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stephspurs · 3 years

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A Family Affair | Euro 2020 Football Fanfiction

Hi besties!! here is the long awaited part 9!! I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did whilst writing it!! a big thank you goes to @emwritesfootball for proofing this part & making sure its up to scratch for all of you lovely readers! Let me know what you think babes hehehe!! Love Always, Steph xx

Part 9. | nona parte

word count; 2006. writing tools; third person until dashed line, first person thereafter. next update; Friday 13/08 5pm AEST. Updates are three times/week (Monday, Wednesday & Friday)! tags (as requested by users); @footballffbarbiex @obsesseds-world @abysshaven link to fic masterlist here

The season kicked off in the middle of August and Amelia had been more than prepared for her first match in the premier league. She spent day after day analysing the players in the first team, introducing them to the magical world of rehearsed tactics. It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for the brilliant girl; she had to learn how to implement the plays coupled with the speed of the game. But so far, so good. Chelsea have been winning and her plays have been working, the boys were getting the hang of it - no matter how apprehensive they were at the start.

Jorgi played a big part in demonstrating the success of the play, performing best in his midfield role to guide the game and direct the change in play to his teammates. By the time they had played a few fixtures, they had really gotten the hang of her approach to set pieces and began to put their trust in the young girl. They were starting to see results and wanted to keep the winning streak going while they could. The fourth fixture in the new season was one that Amelia was looking forward to, personally: Chelsea v Aston Villa, Stamford Bridge, 3pm kick off.

Jack and Amelia had grown closer and closer, FaceTime‘dates’ as Jack would call them, a weekly occurrence. She had spoken to him just as much as she had spoken to Jorgi - and they were still carpooling to and from Cobham together. Her friendship with Jack was full of easy conversation and flirtatious banter, teetering over the line of friendship but being that they were kept physically apart, the friendship line remained largely intact. One person that had drifted even further away from her, despite her believing that it couldn't be possible, was Ben Chilwell.

Every time she walked into a room that he was in, if he didn't have to be there he would immediately leave. Amelia didn’t understand what the problem was. Yeah sure, they were flirty together in Mykonos but they never crossed a line together, no matter how many times the wine went straight to their heads. If anything, she should be the one running away from him. She was the one who sent him a couple of messages here and there that he just opened. She spoke to Mason, Jorgi, Billy Gilmour - who was another one of the boys she had developed a strong friendship with - and all of them insisted they didn’t understand their friend's strange behaviour.

On the evening before the Villa match, Amelia was laying on the couch in her townhouse binge watching yet another docu-series on Netflix when her doorbell rang. This was strange, most people that came past the house these days had their own set of keys (her parents, her brother, Jorgi) or they texted to let her know they were outside. Her townhouse was three stories high, so if she was upstairs on the top level vacuuming the chances of her hearing the door were slim to none. Either way, she got up off of her loveseat and walked to the front door, peeking through the peephole - she lived in London, alone, she wasn’t opening that door until she knew exactly who was on the other side.

______________________________________________________________

“To what do I owe this visit, Benjamin?”

“Hi, Mils.”

“Wow, nickname basis already - I thought only friends called each other by their nicknames.”

“Did you think we weren’t friends?”

“Well, friends don’t treat friends the way you’ve treated me since the evening I left Mykonos.”

With a sigh, Ben looked down at his feet. I did feel a small bit of guilt for that one, but he deserved it. Continuing to find the cracks in the marble step of my door’s threshold more interesting than facing my expression, I took a step back and forced Ben to look up at me.

“Well, are you going to come inside? I’ve got the kettle on and a really good series going that I would like to get back to.”

With a charming smile, Ben took a step forward, took the door handle out of my hand and shut it behind him. Slipping out of his shoes, he followed me down the short hallway to my kitchen and pulled a seat out at the island bench.

“So, really now - why are you here? Nervous about tomorrow?” I questioned as I took two cups out of the cupboard and brewed one tea for him, one coffee for me. 3 years in Italy and coffee in the evening became the norm for me. It was my comfort drink.

“I’m here to apologise for the way I've been acting towards you for the past six weeks. I’ll be honest, I don’t know why I’ve been like this”

“Cut the crap Ben, you know exactly why you’ve been doing it. Now tell me the truth or, as far as I'm concerned, you never came here tonight and tomorrow we will be back to how we were yesterday - you running away from me and me pretending that it doesn't bother me. Even though all it does is bother me.” Not expecting that outburst to come out of me, and to be fair neither did I, Ben looked me in the eye and stayed silent, choosing his next words carefully.

“The first time I saw you, the night you told your brother off in the rec room at St. George’s Park, I thought you were the most determined woman I had ever seen in my life. Not scared of the 30 grown men who were very obviously all on the same side, literally. Then the next time I saw you, after the final match, how you comforted your brother when you were at the highest of highs and he was lower than low, I thought you had more compassion than every person in that stadium put together.”

“When you came to SGP again the next day and delivered the tactical analysis of the game you won, I thought ‘wow she is so intellectually brilliant’. And then when you turned up in Mykonos, all sunkissed and relaxed, sitting next to me and involving me in conversation with my pals but making me feel like you wanted my contribution...I remember it like it was yesterday. Amelia, you smiled at me and my heart did a somersault in my chest.”

“You shut me down outside the club that evening, and when we came back inside I caught the end of your conversation with Jorgi about Fede. Putting two and two together, I understood all that I needed to. The few days after that we carried on like normal. Then, you left and I didn't know if I would ever see you again to be fair. When you messaged me, I got too nervous to reply because I didn't know how to just be your friend. And then when I thought I had finally gotten through a day without thinking about my friend's little sister, you showed up at Cobham as my tactical analyst. I didn’t know what to do Mils, I don't know how to be just your friend when I've had nothing but unfriendly thoughts about you since the first time I saw you command that room of men you had never met in your life.”

The whistle of the kettle ringing out behind me is the only noise filling the kitchen. I’m staring at Ben; he’s staring back at me with nothing but truth behind his eyes and his heart on his sleeve.

“Benj, what you were feeling, what you are feeling is totally valid and I never want you to feel like you can’t share those feelings with me. You’re right, Mykonos changed things for me. What you were feeling was reciprocated, but Ben, I was going back to Italy. At that exact moment, I had no idea I would end up here. I thought I was enjoying a break before another high-intensity season in Italy. I wanted to kiss you so badly at the club that night, but I knew it would only hurt you. I’m used to being hurt, it's a feeling I've grown to expect. But you, you’re too pure to experience the kind of hurt that comes along with knowing you’re making a bad decision, but doing it anyway, because I wanted to be selfish with your heart.”

“Amelia, can I ask you something?” I nodded, holding my breath as I braced myself for the question poised behind his eyes. “If you were in the mood to be selfish, what would have come from that evening?”

“I can probably show you better than I can tell you,”

Walking around the island bench, I pulled the back of Ben’s chair slightly so he pivoted towards me. Standing in between his tracksuit-covered legs, I ran both hands up his arms until I got to his neck and finally beside his face. Threading my fingers through his hair, I pulled his face towards mine and our lips met. It was as soft as a butterfly kiss but as powerful as anything I had ever felt before. His hands wound around my waist and settled themselves on the small of my back before travelling down and giving my backside a gentle caress, forcing a laugh out of my lips and straight into his mouth. Pulling away slightly, so we both had a bit of breathing space to sort out our lightheadedness, Ben spoke his next words very softly.

“I need you to promise me something, Amelia.You need to promise me that you will stop thinking about my heart before your own. I am old enough to make my own decisions, and the decision to ignore you for these past few weeks has been one of the worst ones I've made in a really long time. But I did make it, and it was because I got scared, and I hurt you, and I am so sorry. The decision to come here tonight however, I feel like it more than makes up for that one very very stupid one”

“You’re such a smooth talker, Benj.”

“Say my name again, Mils, you don’t know what it does to me.”

“Down boy, your tea is going cold and I need to find out who killed Sophie in West Cork.Meet me in the lounge.”

A few hours had passed and it was nearing 10pm, well past Amelia’s bed time, but Ben was still sitting on her couch, feet on the table (despite her telling him to remove them) and arm around the back of her shoulders.

“Chilly, I don’t want you to think I'm not interested in you because I so am, I just don’t want to rush into anything. What I left behind in Italy was complicated and heavy; I'm still trying to learn how to exist without him if I'm honest. I want you to just give me the space I need to grow into my own here in the city, if that’s okay with you.”

“Of course it's okay, Mils. From what Jorgi has told me about Fede, I can understand why you want to take it slow now. But please, don’t call me Chilly. My friends call me Chilly, and Mills. I thought I made it clear before that I don’t want to be your friend.”

“To me, you’re Benj. Thank you. Wait - what do you mean what Jorgi has told you about Fede?”

“I may have asked a couple times about you, and for the record, he is team Bamelia.”

“Bamelia? That is the ugliest word I have ever heard. Never use it again.”

“How can it be ugly? It's mostly your name, and nothing associated with you could ever be considered anything less than beautiful.”

“Stop being so smooth Benj, you’re going to make me blush in a minute.”

“Good, can’t wait to see how you could possibly look even cuter than you do right now.”

“That’s enough Benjamin.”

“Okay I’m done now.”

Part 10. | parte dieci

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olivia-anderson-fanfic · 3 years

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Stalker X Stalker, Part 4

First

Perma tag: @nathleigh

Stalker x Stalker taglist: @aespades @jayjayspixiepop @blueslushgueen @fan-written @seraphichana @nerd-nowandforever

Marinette almost missed Hawkmoth. Sure, she ended up extremely emotionally repressed, but hey! At least her opponent was stupid, at least she never had to fear losing.

But, yeah, that was why she didn’t notice the fact that chloroform was on the floor. That was way too smart for a villain, in her opinion. Wasn’t Joker supposed to be insane or something? Why wasn’t he completely stupid like Hawkmoth had been?

Those were her last thoughts before her vision blacked out.

She blinked her eyes open one time while she was being transported, but… it wasn’t enough. Her head pounded, her limbs felt like lead. She tried to pull one of her arms away from the five goons carrying her around -- she giggled at how much effort they were going through to keep a half-conscious person down -- but it was too weak to even break their grip. She wasn’t going to be getting out of the situation anytime soon.

She rested her head back against the chest of whoever was carrying her head.

Her eyes fluttered shut without her permission.

It took a while for her to be able to open her eyes again, and when she did she was almost tempted to close them. She was tied up with Red Robin, hanging upside down over a vat of acid. Decidedly not a good situation to be in. Maybe she could ignore it for a little longer…?

She buried her face in the neck of Red Robin’s suit, using the cool material as a kind of cold pack to try and soothe her pounding headache.

… wait... Red Robin!

She had a bit of protection because of her mask covering her mouth and nose and miraculous immune system, but he was a human and both his mouth and nose were uncovered! Shit!

Marinette pulled back as much as she could to check his face and see if he was okay and then cursed the domino mask blocking his eyes from her view. What she could see wasn’t good, though: the skin of his face had broken out into hives where he had come into contact with the chloroform. Ouch.

She tried just poking the good parts of his face with her nose to get him to wake up, but clearly that wasn’t working. Alright, new plan.

“Red Robin?” She whispered.

Nothing.

“Red Robin Red Robin Red Red Red Red Red…”

She was pretty sure she was doing this annoying thing right. She didn’t have siblings, how could she know?

Wait wait wait, what was that one thing that his siblings always said to him?

“Reeeeed Robin, yum~.”

Not even that got a response? Damn, he must really be out of it.

Time for drastic measures, then.

She tipped her head back as far back as it could go and then slammed her forehead against his. This evoked a lot of swearing from both parties. Apparently, headbutting people doesn’t help headaches.

When her head stopped ringing as loudly, she peeked her eyes open. “Sorry, checking to see if you were alive.”

He gave about as much of a nod as he could. “It’s… I understand why you had to do it.”

She gave a tentative smile. “Right. Still, sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he assured her, then glanced down to see what they were working with. He bit his lip anxiously. “Ah, that’s not good,” he said after a few moments of consideration.

She rolled her eyes because, yeah, obviously. She didn’t say that aloud, it wasn’t productive, so she said: “I’m going to squirm. See if you can free your arms a little?”

“Do you think I have some kind of gadget in my gloves for every situation?”

“Don’t you?”

He hesitated. “I mean… yes, I do have something that could help us out of the ropes, but we are kinda over acid right now. How fast is your reaction time?”

She tipped her head from side to side with an awkward smile. “Not great.”

“Then maybe we should just wait for backup --.”

“Do you think they’ll get here before Joker does?”

“... you’re right. Start squirming --.”

“Wow, you two hate me that much? I’m hurt,” a voice cooed.

Marinette jumped out of her skin. She craned her neck to glare at Joker for scaring her…

And immediately regretted it. Why was his face not attached to his skull properly? Did he cut his own face off? Who even does that? Ew.

Red Robin scowled at him. “I can’t say we were all glad to hear you were out.”

“Red Robin...” she warned.

“Wow, not even old Batsy was happy to hear the news?”

“Nope. Didn’t say anything, actually.”

Joker’s smile wavered. “He didn’t?”

“Um, Red,” she tried again.

“Nothing,” he confirmed. “Not. A. Word.”

Joker didn’t seem to know what to do about this information. Batman wasn’t even paying attention to him? What was the point, then?

Marinette was also concerned about what was going on, but for a completely different reason. She leaned close to his ear and whispered: “Why are we trying to anger the psychopath?”

He gave as much of a shrug as he could while tied up. “If he’s talking he’s not trying to kill us.”

“And what if he gets angry enough to kill us?”

“He probably won’t.”

She winced. “Okay, I really don’t like your use of ‘probably’ there --.”

With both of their hands forced behind their backs, the only comfort he could really give was pressing his good cheek to hers. It shouldn’t have worked, but apparently life or death situations mess with your emotions.

“Just… trust me?” He pleaded quietly.

She sucked in a deep breath before turning to glare at Joker, who was still having a crisis over the fact that Batman didn’t care as much as he did. Well, she guessed that she had to take out her headache on someone. Might as well be the bitch in ugly clown makeup.

“You know, I don’t even understand why people are scared of you.”

Joker frowned and turned to look at her. “What?”

“I mean, I get why Poison Ivy is feared, I get why Mr. Freeze is feared… I even get Penguin and Riddler since they both have a high enough intellect to make up for their lack of powers… but you’re just… some guy.”

Joker gave her a cold look. “I could kill you.”

“So could a particularly determined cow, you’re not special.”

Red Robin snickered. She smiled, a little proud of herself for making him laugh.

Their grins were wiped off their faces when the rope holding them up dropped.

It caught them again dangerously close to the acid. Red Robin was a few centimeters from getting a new haircut. Marinette wondered, morbidly, whether her suit would go with her if she disintegrated.

“Not going to kill us, huh?”

“... well, I did say probably,” he mumbled, his face a little red.

She swallowed thickly. “If we live, I’m going to kill you.”

“Fair. Want to mess with him if he’s going to kill us anyways?”

“... yes.” She whipped around to glare at Joker again. “I mean, honestly, why aren’t you dead yet?”

“We don’t kill,” supplied Red Robin.

She grinned. “Sure, and I get that. I’m also not fond of murder... but is every citizen in Gotham just agreeing to not kill him? Does Batman spend all his time making sure that civilians don’t do it? Why hasn’t anyone seen him on the street and just tried to run him over?”

“... I mean, Robin hit him with the Batmobile once.”

“See?” She grinned. “And don’t even get me started on Punchline and your goons, Joker. How did you find so many people loyal to you?”

“I love him!” Said Punchline defensively.

“... sweetie, if you want a pasty white guy with green hair just watch 2016 Jacksepticeye.”

Red Robin nodded. “At least he’s kind of funny sometimes.”

“If you need the guy to be evil, how about the evil alter ego he made… what was he called?”

“Antisepticeye.”

“Ha, you’re a fucking nerd,” Marinette teased.

Red Robin blushed (or maybe that was just the blood slowly rushing to their heads from being upside down for so long) and pointedly ignored her: “Look up Antisepticeye. It’ll probably be healthier for you.”

Punchline didn’t have a retort for that. Marinette was deciding that was because she was considering it, not because she probably didn’t know who Jack/Antisepticeye was.

She pushed on: “And, hey, you goons don’t have to give Punchline over there the glory. Stab your boss. C’mon, it’ll be cool. Doubt he’s paying you more than whatever bounty is on his head, anyways.”

“If you’re going to rally henchmen maybe you shouldn’t call them ‘goons’,” suggested Red Robin.

She pouted. “But ‘goons’ sounds cuter.”

He opened his mouth to retort but she’d never know what he was going to say because, at that moment, Signal and Robin came busting in through the skylight.

Tim relaxed when he heard the glass shatter. Whether Marientte’s henchmen rallying had somehow worked or their backup had come, it at least meant that Joker and Punchline were distracted from wanting to murder them.

He struggled to crane his neck to see what was going on.

Oh. Damn. Damian was back from his angsting on the weird murder island? And he was here? Nevermind, he’d prefer Joker and Punchline. Damian was never going to let him live this down.

Speaking of Damian, a weight jumped onto their ropes and the three vigilantes became a pendulum. Tim grit his teeth tightly and Marinette let loose a long string of swears as their headaches worsened.

But, apparently, the world wasn’t done with them. Damian sliced the line at the highest point and they went flying across the room. Tim was the unlucky one on the bottom when they hit the ground, which he doubted was an accident.

Damian left them to deal with things on their own from there. Least he could have done was cut them free with his katana, but Tim supposed that was too much to wish for from the youngest brother.

He rested his head back against the cool floor for a second. He could feel Marinette stretch across his shoulder to do the same. They sighed in relief. This was the closest they had come to treating their headaches and wow was it nice.

But, frankly, resting in the middle of a fight isn’t a great idea. So, they wriggled around on the floor until he was able to flick open the tiny knife in the index finger of his gloves and cut the rope binding them without, y’know, cutting one of them instead.

Freedom! What did they do with this newfound freedom, you may ask? Scratch their heads. Turns out chloroform sucks for many reasons and one of those is that it’s a major skin irritant.

He also vomited. Thank god they’d been freed. He’d been only a few seconds away from throwing up on Marinette. He felt especially bad about that when she peeled a hand from her itching to hold his hair away from his face.

The fight was over soon enough. Duke and Damian came over to watch the two of them attempting to peel their skin off layer by layer.

“Pathetic,” chided Damian.

“Don’t be a dick --.” Marinette cut herself off, her hand flying to her mouth. “I swore in front of a baby.”

“I’m twelve!”

“Exactly: a baby.” She reached out and cupped a very affronted Damian’s face in her hands. “Look, you still have baby fat! You shouldn’t be fighting crime!”

Tim couldn’t tell if she was messing with Damian for being rude to them or if she genuinely saw him as a little kid. He wasn’t going to correct her. She’d remember he was a gremlin soon enough.

Damian wrenched his face from her grip. “If I hadn’t come you two would have been burned in acid.”

“Please, we all know Signal probably could have dealt with this entirely on his own,” Marinette waved him off.

Duke rested a hand over his heart like he was touched.

Tim rolled his eyes and pulled Marinette to him, resting his head on top of hers lazily. “We should get a checkup at the cave. Chloroform has… not nice effects and we both rolled around in it a little while fighting.”

Duke and Damian both winced, but Marinette didn’t seem all that concerned.

“I’ll be fine. My immune system is enhanced by --.”

Duke clapped his hands by her ears as loudly as he could. Neither Marinette nor Tim were particularly happy about it.

“Behold: a headache, one of the main symptoms of chloroform. Your face also has some red streaks, so don’t even try to deny that the chloroform is affecting you.”

“I take back my praise, I’ve decided I hate you,” she murmured, massaging her temples.

“I just remembered that I need the siren on my bike on to tell all the other bats we’ll need them at the cave...”

“Wait, no --.”

Marinette glared at Black Bat and Spoiler. The batboys had left the infirmary area for her own comfort and that was nice of them but she would really prefer if she hadn’t had to come at all.

Now she sat in some of Black Bat’s pajamas and one of Spoiler’s spare masks as they inspected her.

Her nose scrunched as Black Bat drew blood from her arm.

“This is dumb. I don’t need this.”

“We’ve been told. Humor us?” Spoiler said and, though Marinette couldn’t see her face from where she was, she knew she was rolling her eyes.

“I would if you were actually funny.”

“I think we can definitely put her down for irritability,” commented Spoiler.

Black Bat nodded and dutifully wrote it down. Traitor.

The cool metal of a stethoscope was pressed to her back and she cringed.

“Deep breaths.”

Marinette complied, however reluctantly. Might as well get all this bullshit over with as soon as possible.

… she was regretting that decision, now, though.

She gave Batman a cold look. “You can’t keep me here.”

“You need to stay so we can monitor your state overnight. You could have asphyxiated.”

“But we didn’t,” complained Red Robin, who looked just as annoyed about this as she was.

“We have lives, B,” she said.

“You weren’t going to do anything other than patrols tonight, don’t act like I’m tearing you away from something important.”

“The protection of the city is important,” Red argued.

“Neither of you would be much help tonight in the state you’re in, anyways.”

Red Robin stuck his lower lip out in a pout. Marinette gave her best puppy-dog eyes.

Batman wasn’t moved. “If you need something, Agent A will provide it.”

She blinked, eyes returning to normal in her confusion. “Who --?”

He disappeared into the shadows before she could finish the conversation, something she was, unfortunately, getting used to.

Marinette scowled at where he had last been.

Maybe she should have expected this, maybe if she had been less out of it she would have. They had given her pajamas when she’d had clothes and insisted on cleaning her old ones ‘for chloroform’. The checkup might have been a genuine checkup on her state, but it probably wouldn’t have mattered what the results were. She was always going to end up staying the night in the cold, dingy cave filled with bats.

She sighed and laid back against the stone floors. She heard Red Robin groan and looked up to see he had been locked out of the Batcomputer for the night. He leaned back in his chair and mumbled curses.

She giggled at his distress and, despite himself, a tiny grin poked at his lips.

“Want to race to see who can hack into it first?” She suggested.

He raised an eyebrow at her under his domino. “Think you can win?”

“Considering I don’t know that much about hacking, I’m going to say probably not.”

A wide smile spread across his face, now, and he waved her over. She took a seat on the desk beside the keyboard and he started teaching her everything.

Most of what he said, while technically heard, wasn’t exactly understood. She couldn’t concentrate. It was the first time she had seen him in anything but his vigilante suit and she decided that that was a crime because he looked so cute in the Batman-themed pajamas. Furthermore, the way his long hair was pushed back by a headband to keep it out of the green paste spread over his face to alleviate the chloroform’s rash reminded her of a spa day in all those movies.

And then there was the smile. It made her heart flutter in her chest because she was so used to his grins but this was just a genuine smile. He looked so passionate about the intricacies of cyber crime. She was almost sad about the domino hiding his eyes because she wanted to see the way they lit up while he explained different ways viruses could be accidentally downloaded to devices.

Basically, she was a mess for this random cute guy she worked with. She had never seen him so casual and at ease and it felt far more intimate than it maybe should.

She rested her head on her hand, nodding along as he talked about data encryption versus decoding.

Well, maybe a forced sleepover in the Batcave wouldn’t be so bad...

Tim was suffering a lot more than he would ever admit, and only a small part of it was due to chloroform.

He was going to be having a sleepover with one of his idols and he was going to be spending a large amount of the time trying not to throw up. And she could totally tell, too, why else would she be watching him so intensely? Someone kill him, please. He was so glad he had a secret identity because he didn’t know how he would manage if she thought Tim Drake-Wayne was a loser.

Granted, she was going to think Red Robin was a loser... but at least he had a second chance as Tim.

He rested his chin on the back of his chair. He had hacked into the Batcomputer already but it was a relatively dull night out on patrols and he wasn’t eager to be yelled at for showing Marinette some files on top of already hacking into them when he wasn’t supposed to.

“Wanna do something?”

She grinned. “Is there anything to do here other than train?”

“... nothing approved.”

She tipped her head to the side. “And of the things that aren’t approved?”

He matched her grin. “Well…”

And that was how he ended up setting up a movie projector in the cave so they could watch Groundhog Day. Marinette had taken to making them a pillow fort.

Duke stumbled down the steps, half awake, and raised his eyebrows at them from behind his domino. He poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot that they had made and took a long sip before sending the two of them a wary look. “Do I want to know?”

Marinette didn’t look up from her and Tikki’s base construction. “Dunno. Do you want to watch Groundhog Day with us?”

He frowned. “Isn’t that the one where that guy in a time loop stalks his co-worker until he knows enough to make her fall in love with him?”

“Just say you don’t like romcoms and go,” Marinette irritably.

“I’m fine with romcoms, it’s just… a little messed up that he uses the knowledge he gets from being in a time loop to ensure she falls for him?”

“It’s a story about self-improvement,” Tim said, sending his brother a glare. “He grows as a person until he is worthy of her love.”

“Him learning about her is part of his arc. He starts off selfish and he ends it with a deeper appreciation for other people,” agreed Marinette.

Duke held his free hand up in mock surrender. “Fine, fine. Enjoy your stalker movie.”

“It’s not a --,” Tim tried to argue, but Duke was already heading back upstairs.

He huffed a little and finished setting up the computer and projector, then took a seat in the pillow fort. She poured each of them a cup of coffee, put a straw in hers to maintain her identity, and then took a seat beside him.

He took it from her with a bright smile and turned on the movie.

She rested her head on his shoulder as the happy-go-lucky music started up.

Unfortunately for them, they didn’t manage to stay awake for all that long. Duke had drugged the coffee pot.

Marinette shifted awake a while later and promptly decided that being awake sucked.

Nothing about her current situation sucked, of course. At some point during the night they had fallen asleep and now she was laying half on top of Red Robin, clinging to him like a koala. He didn’t seem all that upset about it, though, with his arm wrapped around her and his face buried in her hair.

Unfortunately, the time on the bottom right of the Batcomputer’s screen told her she didn’t have much time to enjoy it.

She started the slow process of extracting herself from him. Getting the arm off of herself was easy, getting his face away from her head was much harder (this wasn’t helped by the fact that the paste on his face had stuck to her hair).

There was one scare where she thought he was going to wake up. She pushed herself off of his chest and he took a long breath in. Marinette froze, watching his lips tighten… and then he turned over in his sleep.

Oops, apparently she’d been suffocating him a little in her sleep. Sorry, Red.

Well, at least she was free now.

She slipped out of the pillow fort and glanced at the time again.

Even less time to do what she needed. Because that’s how time works.

She sighed and called Tikki over with a tiny wave of her hand, walking over the edge of the railing. She looked down at the abyss that stretched many feet below.

Tikki couldn’t have looked more disapproving if she tried.

“It’s just a little insurance,” Marinette signed.

This didn’t make Tikki any less upset with her, but she hadn’t really expected it to. She signed for her transformation. She tied herself to the railing with her yoyo as a precaution and then hooked her legs around the railing.

And down she went.

She flexed at an awkward angle, flashlight in her mouth, and stuck a tracker to the bottom of the platform.

And, really, she wasn’t intending on using it. Like she said, it was just insurance. They had drawn blood from her earlier and she knew for a fact that it wasn’t necessary for chloroform inhalation. The only reason that made sense for that was that they wanted to check and see if she had inhaled some but they already knew that so… what did they want with her blood?

She was willing to bet it had something to do with her secret identity. And, hey, she didn’t particularly care if they knew her identity, she trusted them, but if it ever got out because of them revealing then who the bats were would be 1) revenge and 2) a good distraction.

“Hey --?”

Thank the kwamis she had tied herself to the railing because she’d been surprised enough to let go of the platform.

“Shit, sorry!” Said Red Robin.

She pulled herself back up onto the platform with his help and then collapsed on the cool stone. She spat the flashlight from her mouth. “Fuuuuuuck, don’t do that again, please.”

“Sorry,” he said again. Then he glanced back at where she had been and, momentarily, his lips pulled into a frown. “I gotta ask: what were you doing?”

“Hm?”

Shitshitshit.

“Oh, I wanted to see if there was anything down there or if it was just for The Aesthetic.”

“Why not just use your yoyo to go down?”

She shuddered. “The flashlight barely did anything. Would you want to go down into that darkness with no clue even how far down it goes?”

He seemed to accept the answer. “It’s an old iron mine. No one uses it anymore, though.”

She nodded her understanding.

She pushed herself back up to a sitting position and looked at him.

“The bats don’t get back for a while and we’re still on lockdown, so… want to do something?”

Damian was the first one to get home. Apparently he had broken a leg on patrol. This was fine (well, maybe he shouldn’t have been driving himself, but whatever).

What was not fine was that he had promptly decided to be an asshole.

Tim and Marinette had been playing Minecraft on the Batcomputer and, like all younger brothers, Damian asked to play.

And, like all older brothers, Tim barely looked up from his controller to tell him: “No.”

Damian looked to be on the verge of a meltdown.

Marinette sighed and sent Tim a tired look. “Red, don’t be mean. He’s just a kid. There’s more controllers, we can just give him one.”

“But…” He started. Damian was a terrible partner to play Minecraft with because he never helped out with anything except for the farm.

However, Marinette was looking at him expectantly. Tim bit his lip, considering.

Damian looked between the two of them and a wicked grin spread across his face and oh no.

Damian took a seat next to Marinette and gave her puppy-dog eyes (a real feat, considering the fact that he was wearing a domino and therefore his eyes were invisible). “Miss Ladybug, can’t you please make him let me play?”

Marinette gave Tim a tired look. “Red, c’mon, just for a bit.”

Damian smirked a little but, by the time Marinette turned back around, he had schooled his face back into a pout.

She handed him her controller. “You can have mine. I’ll find another for myself.”

The two watched her leave and Tim sent his younger brother a glare. “I can’t believe you would embarrass yourself this much just to play a game.”

“Anything to annoy you, ‘big bro’.”

He opened his mouth to retort, but then Marinette came back and all he could do was send him a glare behind her back.

Damian retaliated by sitting himself on Marinette’s lap. She looked down, amusement making her eyes crinkle, but otherwise didn’t acknowledge it. Damian smirked and stuck his tongue out at Tim.

That little shit.

And it continued on for hours while the three of them waited for the rest of the bats to come back. Damian would cling to Marinette in some way and he would become the bad guy for glaring at a child. He was seriously considering breaking the No Killing Rule for this kid.

Finally, though, people started coming back and apparently Damian thought it too embarrassing to do such a thing in front of more than just the person he was trying to annoy because he clambered off her lap to play just a little bit away.

Bruce was the last one to come in and he looked at his kids with the patented Batdad Glare because they had managed to drag Steph into playing with them (without much effort) and Cass into watching (with much more effort). Which meant that there were currently five family disappointments. Yay them.

Tim smiled innocently. “What? We got bored. Maybe you should let us out so this doesn’t happen again.”

“I’m keeping you here for your own safety.”

Marinette and Tim both groaned.

“I have work to do.”

“Me, too.”

Bruce didn’t relent because he was a stubborn asshole.

But that was fine. They really hadn’t expected them to. Tim glanced at Marinette and she twirled her index finger against her flat palm, the sign for ‘start’.

One flash and smoke bomb later, the two of them were running as fast as they could to his bike. He grinned as he helped his giggling friend get on and hopped up himself. Arms wrapped around him tightly and her face buried in his back. They tore out of the cave, giggling all the while.

#stalker x stalker #maribat #timinette #timari #shutterbug #timmari #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #red robin #tim drake #theyre paranoid bastards your honor

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chenziee · 3 years

Text

Dine and Dash (chapter 1)

[Read on AO3 or under the cut]

Can you believe it's been 11 years since Ace was saved from Marineford? Yeah, me neither. Still feels like fucking yesterday. So happy they managed save him in the end :) #ForeverInDenial

I took the opportinity of the anniversary of chapter 574 being published to finally write the obligatory Everybody is alive and nothing hurts AU that we all deserve, especially a certain beautiful, precious fire boy <3 (And yes, I know the anniversary was yesterday, I fucked up but shhh)

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Relationships: ASL brothers, Law/Luffy

Rating: Teen and Up

Words: 1894

Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Everybody Lives, Nothing Hurts, Portgas D. Ace Lives, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, lawlu being cute, Protective Sabo (One Piece), Protective Portgas D. Ace, best big bros protective of their innocent baby bro, ASL Brothers, what else uhhh, i might add more as i go, Donquixote "Corazon" Rosinante Lives

Summary: When the three brothers who had once terrorized the Grey Terminal as well as the Goa Capital come together, nothing good can come of it. Even though they're not children anymore. Or maybe especially since they're not children anymore.

Or; the obligatory Everybody Is Alive And Nothing Hurts AU

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When Ace jumped from his raft up onto the railing of Luffy’s ship, he honestly didn’t expect someone to be standing right where he landed. He couldn’t blame Nami for screaming like she did in favor of a normal greeting, and it was also no surprise when Luffy’s voice came only a second later, asking what was wrong in a voice full of alarm. What was surprising, however, was when Luffy’s head popped out from behind what looked like a large polar bear sleeping right on the deck of the Thousand Sunny. Seriously, Luffy and his tendency to pick up the weirdest things.

"Hey, Luffy," Ace greeted, waving at his brother.

A bright smile appeared on Luffy's face when he realized just who the intruder was, scrambling to his feet and immediately falling over, nearly landing face first onto the lawn. Ace just had to laugh at the sight, but his amusement soon died down. Instead, he had to frown at the pained groan and cursing in a voice that was decidedly not Luffy's, and neither did it seem to have come from the polar bear who was still snoozing away without care.

"Sorry, Torao," Luffy apologized with a sheepish smile directed at the person he had apparently tripped over.

Who the hell was ‘Torao?’ Who was the person Ace could only assume his baby brother was napping with? Seemed like an interrogation was in order. Later though, there were arrangements to be made first. After all, having back up on this couldn't hurt and he had the best back up just waiting for him on the next island.

Picking himself up and running over, Luffy nearly crashed into Nami in his hurry this time, but his navigator managed to side step him at the last second, probably expecting something like this to happen. Luffy only shot her a crooked smile and a half-hearted apology, prompting her to shake her head at him, crossing her arms over her chest in a scolding manner.“Honestly, how is your entire family like this? One of you is going to give me a heart attack one day.”

“Sorry,” Ace and Luffy apologized in unison, the both of them bowing to her for good measure. After all, they both knew all too well that Nami’s wrath was scarier than anything they had ever witnessed on the Grand Line so far.

Nami huffed, shooting one last unhappy glare at them before she turned around and said, “We should be arriving at the next island in a few hours, I’m going to check what we need and get things ready.”

Ace sighed in relief; it seemed like they had somehow managed to avoid the worst.

"Ace, what are you doing here?" Luffy asked as soon as Nami walked away.

Ace grinned, finally jumping off of the railing he had been perching on. “Can’t I just come visit my favourite baby bro?”

“Of course you can,” Luffy said, sticking his tongue out at him. “I just didn’t expect you. Weren’t you going to Wano to see Tama?”

“Yeah, but there was a change of plans. Sabo’s actually on the island you’re heading to so I took a detour,” Ace explained with a shrug.

The reaction was immediate. Just as Ace expected, Luffy perked up even more, his smile going impossibly wide and Ace could swear there were stars in his eyes. He was also basically vibrating in place and Ace had to chuckle at the sight. He understood Luffy’s excitement, neither of them got to see the revolutionary nearly as often as they would have liked for obvious reasons, but Luffy was just too cute when he got like this. How he even did the… bright all over thing was something beyond Ace’s understanding but he loved seeing it every single time regardless.

“Sabo’s there?! Why didn’t he tell me?” Luffy cried out, grabbing onto Ace’s arm in his eagerness.

Before Ace could reply, the other person who had been hidden behind the polar bear until then stood up, muttering seemingly to himself, but loud enough for both Ace and Luffy to hear, “Oh great, there’s going to be three of them.”

“Torao~,” Luffy whined, turning to look at the grumpy man with a pout. “Don’t say it as if it’s a bad thing,” he finished, bouncing away from Ace to stand in front of the other man instead.

Ace scowled at the sight of Luffy peeking up at ‘Torao,’ who only stared back impassively as if he wasn’t bothered in the least by Luffy’s puppy eyes. Ace didn’t think that was even possible. Not to mention they were standing way too close to each other for Ace’s tastes.

“It is a bad thing. There’s way too much energy just with you, Luffy-ya. I don’t need more of it around me,” Torao told him, finishing with a light flick to Luffy’s forehad. An action that nearly had Ace toss a fireball at him if only Luffy didn’t start giggling over it.

Suddenly, Luffy stepped even closer to the man, wrapping his arms around his waist and grinning up at him. “You love it,” he announced, sounding all too proud of himself.

“In very small doses,” Torao admitted before leaning down and kissing the top of Luffy’s head.

Oh, Sabo was so hearing about this.

Ace cleared his throat loudly, raising his hand to make sure the fire crackling threateningly in his palm was the first thing Torao would see when he looked in his direction.

“Nice to see you again, too, Fire Fist-ya,” the man said flatly, one eyebrow raised.

Ace smiled at him, making sure it look as fake as he could make it. “Trafalgar Law. What do you think you’re doing to my little brother?”

“What does it look like?” Law shot back, showing a smirk that only managed to irk Ace further. If Luffy wasn’t standing right there, he would really have thrown that fireball at him.

“Ace?” Luffy asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion as he looked at the fire dancing angrily under Ace’s command.

Ace sighed at that, reluctantly putting the flames out. That asshole was seriously so lucky Luffy was there. He and Sabo would have to corner him later and threaten him when Luffy wasn’t looking. “Anyway, as I was saying—” Ace shook his head, trying to make himself focus on the matter at hand— “I don’t think Sabo knew you were this close to the island. He said he only had one afternoon free and absolutely needed to see me for some reason. So, Luffy. Want to come with us to get something to eat?” he asked, even though he knew the answer. As if Luffy would ever say no to that.

“Let’s get meat!” Luffy exclaimed loudly, full of enthusiasm and throwing both arms in the air. He nearly punched Law in the face.

Sadly, it really was only nearly but Ace still took great pleasure in returning the smirk Law had given him earlier. He quickly turned back to Luffy, however, and replied, “Well, Sabo seemed like he had something in mind already so let’s just go and see.”

Luffy nodded at his words, a bright, happy smile that looked just the same as it did all those years ago at Mt. Colubo on his face, and Ace felt his previous smirk melt into a fond smile in return. There was warmth in his chest at the sight, the knowledge that his little brother was still the same even after everything that had happened over the years making him incredibly happy.

Without even realizing, Ace’s hand came to touch his own exposed chest, his fingers tracing the rough, large burn scar that Akainu had left there during the war four years ago. It was honestly a miracle he was even alive. He had fully accepted death back on the execution scaffold but then Luffy crashed in, just as loud, just as unexpected as always, bringing so much chaos with him that it changed the entire course of the whole ordeal. And then he accepted it once more when he threw himself in Akainu’s way to protect Luffy.

But now here they were, both of them miraculously alive—thanks to Jinbe, Marco, Vista, and, as much as it pained him to admit it given the very recent circumstances, mostly thanks to Trafalgar Law’s incredible timing and medical skill—and both bearing lava burn scars on their chests as a reminder of what could have happened; what was so incredibly close to happening. It was incredible how much the experience had changed them, yet somehow, how they were still the same as they used to be when playing pirates in their little tree house base.

And when Sabo had appeared in front of them again, with tears and apologies and so very alive, it felt almost inevitable.

Ace shook his head at his own thoughts. This was no time to get all sentimental. “Okay, Sabo’s waiting. Are you ready to go? Striker isn’t really a two person boat but it should be okay,” Ace said, gesturing towards his fire powered raft.

“Yes!” Luffy shouted like he had just won something. “Your boat always seems so fun to play with,” he sang, running over to look down at the slim, sleek raft that was gently swaying along the Sunny.

“Glad you’re so excited,” Ace chuckled.

He went to jump back down on Striker immediately, but Luffy stopped him when he spoke up next, “Oh wait. Do you think we could take the Mini Merry? Torao is meeting his dad on the island, too.”

Ace paused, looking at Luffy with a slight frown. What the hell was a ‘mini merry?’ But more importantly, did they really have to take Trafalgar with them?

Thankfully, Law had saved Ace from having to deal with either of those questions when he spoke up instead, “Thanks but I’ll stay here, Cora-san won’t be there until evening anyway. Plus, I’m not going to risk your brother drowning me on the way.” He shot Ace another one of those smirks when he finished and Ace almost wanted to burn it off of his face but…

“Fair point,” he admitted instead, surprised at the laughter that bubbled out of his chest. He shuddered in horror at the idea of this asshole growing on him.

“I have no idea what you two are talking about,” Luffy mumbled in annoyance, but perked back up a second later when he announced he was going to let the crew know he was going on ahead.

Ace and Law looked at each other, Ace trying to convey with his eyes the threat of bodily harm that he was thinking in regards to the man standing in front of him. He could only assume he had succeeded when the corners of Law’s mouth twitched up slightly, followed by the surgeon flipping Ace off before he turned around and walked off, sitting down and making himself comfortable with his back resting against the somehow still asleep polar bear.

He was seriously pissing Ace off.

He did have to give it to him, though; if nothing else, this asshole had guts. Reluctantly, Ace had to admit that was probably the most important qualification to pass as Luffy’s boyfriend. He was still not getting out of that interrogation though.

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[chapter 2 coming...... as soon as I can finish it]

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buck-nialled · 4 years

Text

Anybody - N. Horan Imagine

NOTE: I sincerely appreciate everybody’s patience with me getting to requests. Sometimes its just nice to take a lil break and write a niall amnesia fic, ya know? anyways, here’s another requested imagine (i combined two because they were vv similar), enjoy!

“You’re telling us you’re still single?” The girl scoffs. “Yeah, right.”

It made your cheeks flame up incredibly and your stomach turn in guilt. Normally, this conversation would not have you so antsy or defensive if it had not been for Niall’s presence beside you. The idea to share lunch with the cast one day and have Niall tag along was entirely your idea, so there was nobody else to throw blame on. You were happy Niall agreed almost immediately to your proposal, despite knowing the repercussions if either of you somehow clued that you were together in front of your friends and especially in public.

Your lifestyles were definitely a commonality in your relationship. The constant interviews and public appearances were what led to the two of you introducing one another. You both had a disposition for complimenting people greatly, but had a difficult time taking them to heart. Your first meeting could be illustrated with the two of you gawking over each other’s work and red cheeks, with the subtle flirtatious remark thrown in. But it was the impetus for the exchanging of numbers, and a couple of dinners and intimate nights shared in the bedroom.

More importantly, it led you here at a restaurant surrounded by your costars for one of Niall’s favorite television shows and the man himself. He claimed it to be one of his favorites before he even met you, which you still doubt to be the truth, but you never pushed him for validity. The question from your costar, who could also be considered one of your closest friends, left both you and Niall stunned for a moment.

“Oh, come on. Why is that so hard to believe?”

“You’ve got guys crawling over you all the time.” Another chimes in. You could not argue his point; it happened every time you stumbled across a male fan of the show, over twitter direct messages or blatantly in response to something you posted online. Even during interviews some male hosts would flatter you in the objective to get in your pants, in spite of how clear you made your interests to be platonic.

“So, I can’t be independent and say ‘no’?” You raised your eyebrows, feeling inferior to your colleagues. Unlike them, having a public relationship was off of the table.

“You can. But admit it, you could literallu have anybody, Y/N.” Your friend looks around the table, earning many nods of agreement. You wish every day to wake up and just have the world know your secret. But it did not work like that.

Your publicist immediately refuted the idea of publicly dating when you mentioned your affair with the musician. She went ballistic, claiming you were insane to just post a picture of the two of you to your socials with the mindset of “whatever happens, happens”. It would lead to speculation, which will lead to a closer eye on the two of you and your every move, she argues. Her demands made you want to keep your mouth shut about your fear of being mobbed by cameras off of the red carpet before this conversation. She went on to say the longer you were “available” in the eye of the public, the more popular you would grow. Teenage boys would fawn over you, their girlfriends would google you to see what the hype about you was and hate-stalk you, which would result in a larger following.

Having that disappear all because you were off of the market would make your numbers plummet and lose grip of your male demographic. You were nearly tuning her voice out by this point, until she pointed out that Niall was probably in the same boat. Girl’s loved him; guys were fuming over him. Bigger album sales, followers for days, until the announcement that one of the world’s biggest heartthrobs is officially taken.

You informed Niall about the conversation later that day. And as much as he wanted to say it was bullshit, he could not. It was true. He had attempted many times to present the relationship reveal presentation to his manager and publicist, but both shut him down the moment he began to speak. As of now, both of you were bound by contract to keep your lips shut.

Niall’s aura screamed its independence, so there was no speculation circling him lately about a possible affair. You however, were fresh meat. The new, hottest thing one of few top, trending shows. Everybody wanted to know your whereabouts and who you we’re hanging around with everyday, all day. And it never really seemed to stop.

The night your followers on various media platforms doubled, then tripled, then quadrupled in a matter of hours was when you needed to turn off all receiving notifications. Messages, mentions and questions were flooded to your phone at such a rapid rate that your phone froze. If a photo was even published online of you hugging a man, you would be interrogated about it for the next five interviews following that day.

Recently, the man in question has been your co-star in the series, Ryan. It was clear in the show that your and his character had major chemistry, but outside of the set, Ryan acted like more of a brother figure than anything. He would scare you whenever you turned random corners in the studio, ruffle your hair and bicker with you at any opportunity.

Many gossip news sources were asking both you and your co-star if the relationship between your characters was the same on-screen and off-screen. But it seemed the countless amounts of “no’s” you both delivered immediately after the question was asked was not enough. The other day, a video of him handing you a water bottle with a smile gained thousands of views overnight, as well as theories that you two were hiding a relationship from the public. It could not be further from the truth, but you and Ryan knew it was useless to comment otherwise.

In fact, everybody around you was discouraging the idea to cancel the rumors. All except one person, who always seemed to be cheering you on in your worst moments. And by the eighth week and hundredth photo of you and Ryan allegedly “confirming” your relationship, you had enough.

You stormed into Niall’s apartment with hot feet. You passed by him and paced his kitchen, while he sat up from the couch. Turning down the volume on the golf match playing on the television, he ventures after you and into the kitchen, finding you scavenging his fridge.

“Hang on.” You held up a finger, before retrieving a cold bottle of booze from the fridge. Niall eyes you carefully in your haste to grab the bottle opener already accessible off of his kitchen island and pop the bottle cap off the drink and down half of it. While you guzzle down the drink, Niall gulps, licking his lips.

Chugging a beer, as weird as it sounded, was one of the hottest things Niall had witnessed you do to date.

“Okay,” you slammed the near empty bottle down, taking a deep breath of preparation. “Go ahead.”

“What happened?” He already knew the answer, but it could not hurt to ask. He figured if it bothered you too much to speak about it, you would deny answering. But, considering he was the only person who allowed you to rant to him, you were not going to throw away the opportunity to do so.

“More shit about me and—” That’s the farthest you could let Niall peek at your day before a familiar ringing noise sounds in the kitchen. Niall releases a sigh as you collect your phone from your back pocket, seeing who was calling.

“It’s Ry—”

“Take it. It’s okay.” Niall assures, without you even having to ask. You nod, promising to be quick, though he knew it would be at least twenty minutes before your attentions could turn back to him. That is, if another article was not sent to you about the situation.

“Hey…yeah I saw…” you eye Niall strolling out of the kitchen, his bare back and tense muscles prominent from your view. “Uh huh…” you murmur, before you and Ryan are venting about your day to one another. All of the interrogations at interviews, the photos people had snuck while touring the set, and the trailer for the newest episode that was just dropped. The trailer went viral within two hours because your editors and marketing team decided to include the kissing scene your two character’s shared in that episode along with the montage of other points. By the time you had ended the call, you found Niall showered and lying on his bed. The television in the living room was black, a sign that the golf match ended much earlier.

“Hey…sorry about that.” You mumble, crawling into his bed beside him.

“It’s okay…I assume you don’t want to talk about your day?” He inquires, looking down as you wind an arm over his stomach.

“W-what makes you…”

“I mean, I don’t want you to waste your breath or anything. Judging by the earful you gave Ryan it must’ve been juicy.” Niall remarks through his teeth.

“I was just—”

“Because why waste your time talking to me about it, right?”

“Niall! Stop!” You yell, allowing a heavy silence to fall in between you two. You take your arm away from his middle and sit up, brows scrunching. “Why are you acting like this?” You ask, tone quieter.

“I…don’t know. I’m sorry, I’m just…I’ve been in my head a lot lately. Thinkin’ about lots of things.” He huffs, turning his gaze down to his legs.

“Like?”

“Like…us.” He answers, face solid.

“What about us?” You hesitate with a trembling voice.

“Well, more like how there isn’t an us.” Niall mumbles, voice gravelly. “To everyone else, anyway.” He breathes, trying a smile but with no avail. The sight delivers a brutal sting to your heart.

“Niall…”

“I know we can’t tell anybody; I know.” He rushes out before you could remind him. “But shit, can we at least act like they do when you’re here?” Your lips part, but fail to generate the right words. “Because right now it kind of seems like I don’t exist when Ryan calls and—and when I ask about your day first but he interrupts, it seems like I can’t get a sound out of you after about it. And damnit, Y/N, I want to hear about it! All of it! And having to listen through the walls just to know you’re okay…”

“Yeah?” You whisper.

“I see what everybody else does. And I don’t like it. Not one bit.” You nod, biting your lip to hold back tears much like Niall was doing judging by his crackling voice. The only reason you really spilled your guts to Ryan was that he was in the same exact position you were in, so he would understand you the most. But that was not entirely true. Because right in front of you sat Niall, who was hiding just as much as you were for the same exact reasons.

“I’m…I didn’t know you felt that way.”

“Yeah,” Niall sniffs, “who could blame ya? Ya never have time to ask.”

“And that’s not right.” You shake your head, bringing your body up to straddle his lap. After swinging a bent leg over both of his, and situating yourself over his thighs, you stare into his eyes with a shameful gaze. “It should never be like that. I should tell you about my day, and ask you about yours and…I’m sorry, Niall. I’m so sorry I haven’t.”

“It’s okay—” He tilts his head down, but your hand grabs a hold of his chin scraggly with hair and lifts it back up.

“No, it’s not.” You decree. “To be honest, the reason I never really talk about it is because…I thought it wouldn’t matter to you?” At your admission, Niall’s eyes bulge. The feeling of his warm hands flying to your hips calms both of you to an extent.

“Why would ya think that, love?”

“Wouldn’t you be annoyed hearing me rant about some guy people think I’m dating?” Niall nods his head, understanding your point.

“I suppose…but I’d be angry with you. I’d be on your side.” Niall guarantees with a firm squeeze to your sides. It makes a giggle bubble up from your throat, and a smile crawl up to his lips at the sound of it resounding against his bedroom walls. After bringing his hands in yours and lacing your fingers together, you say, “I’m sure you would. You’d hold me…pleasure me…sing me to sleep.” You smirk, watching Niall grow flush beneath you at his noticeable methods of affection.

“Ryan can’t do any of that.” You bite your lip.

“Damn right he can’t! You’re mine.” Niall looks you up and down, pulling your chest closer to his.

“And I’ll start taking that into consideration more. Now, how about I pleasure you this time to start?” You raise your eyebrows.

“I like the sound of that.” His hand starts to reach up to comb through your hair, but the boisterous rings of your phone interfere once again. Niall heaves a breath and sits back, all while you roll your eyes and reach out for the phone.

“Hey, Ryan.” Niall looks up at you, expecting in less than a second to be off of his lap. But he is rather surprised at the feeling of your hand reaching up to tug the loose sweats down off his waist. “You mind if we talk tomorrow? My boyfriend and I are kind of in the middle of something.” You answer with a smirk, watching Niall’s eyes grow right before you. Ryan’s screams of puzzlement could be heard by Niall as you dragged the phone away from your ear and ended the call. And soon, your grip made its way back to Niall’s boxers with a devious smirk on your lips.

“Now, where were we?”

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psychovigilantewrites · 4 years

Text

Don’t Call Me That Pt. 2

Wordcount: 10,129

A/N: I thought this part 2 would total up to 10k words, but when it hit 10k, I realised that I was only about 65 percent done. So based on the responses I got from tumblr, I decided to publish this first and then conclude the story later on!

TW: mentions of r*pe, mentions of torture, mentions of drugging someone (??) , mental breakdowns, vulnerability, descriptions of anxiety

Also, HERE’S MY FAV MEMES!! I’m so sorry that I can’t tag respective meme creators, because I saved them on my phone and some of them I forgot to include your usernames!! I’M SO SORRY!!! And honest to god is wear there were more but i must have lost them im so sorry im so incompetent lmao

memeesss

You glanced at your phone.

It had already been a week in Hawaii with your friends, and Jason still hadn’t texted you.

Well, you should have expected it, really. Jason was a traumatised, mentally ill man who had been locked away for two years.

Of course he wouldn’t text you first.

You had contemplated texting him over the past few days, typing in an array of messages ranging from a simple “hey” to a whole paragraph, and deleting all of it without hitting send. Did he even switch the phone on? Was he surfing the internet? Or was the phone still there on the shelf where you had left it.

It was driving you crazy.

“Do you have a boyfriend we don’t know about?” a voice called.

You looked up and squinted at the man who was standing up, looking down at you. You were sitting on the beach, a little further away from the ocean where your friends were.

“What are you talking about?” you asked as Alex plopped down next to you.

“You’ve been fidgety the whole time,” he pointed out, combing back his dark shoulder length hair with his fingers, getting sand in them. “We’re on a private beach, and you’ve been fussing over your phone. Who are you talking to?”

“No one,” you grumbled truthfully.

“The girls have been gossiping,” he gestured to the two other girls playing in the water. Your closest friends. It was four of you in that inseparable group.

“Of course they have,” you groaned, “Tell them to SAY IT TO MY FACE, COWARDS!”

You shouted at them, earning you grins and middle fingers from the distance.

“They’re saying you’re in love with someone,” he chuckled, “But they always say stupid shit like that without any evidence. But sometimes, a girl’s intuition is just right, ya know?”

“Stop beating around the bush, Alex,” you rolled your eyes at him despite knowing he couldn’t see past your sunglasses. “No, I’m not in love. I’m just waiting for a text that might never come.”

“Why don’t you text him first?”

“Because it’s not as simple as that!” you flailed your arms, “He’s… complicated. I can’t just text him anything.”

“Girl, unless he’s Mr. Nottingham, or related to you, then it really isn’t that complicated,” he joked.

“Ugh,” you groaned again, falling back onto the cloth you spread out. “Fine. I’ll text him.”

“Atta girl,” Alex grinned, “I’m gonna head back in the water. Join us after. Please?”

“Yeah, yeah,” you waved.

Opening the text window for what had to be the thirtieth time, you finally decided to text him.

You: Miss me yet?

Staring intently at the small ‘sent’ below your message bubble, you waited for it to turn to ‘delivered’.

“Yes!” you hissed. It meant that Jason had indeed switched on the phone.

But after twenty minutes you realised that it didn’t matter if Jason switched on the phone if he didn’t want to talk to you. Cursing to yourself, you decided to join your friends in the water, hoping it’ll distract you from checking your phone every five minutes for a text message that might never come.

After an hour of actually spending time with your friends, all four of you returned to the villa, your mood elevated. Checking your phone, you could have jumped for joy when you saw not one, but four consecutive texts in a row.

Jason: Duck off. Jason: What the duck Jason: WHY CANT I SAY DUCK Jason: I DUCKING HATE THIS

You couldn’t let out a string of giggles.

“Oooh, lover boy texted you back, huh?” Alex peeked over your shoulder. “Gimme, I wanna mess with him.”

He snatched your phone from your hands, surprisingly swift and smooth for a civilian, raising it way above his head so you couldn’t reach it and opened the camera.

“Alex-!”

He threw his other arm over your shoulder and pulled you into his bare chest, crushing you before you could tackle him down. He snapped a picture and sent it.

You froze in horror.

“Why the hell did you do that?!” you yelled.

“Relax, I was just messing around,” he gave your phone back to you.

“You don’t- you don’t understand, you fucking asshole!” you screamed.

“I- I’m sorry,” Alex stuttered, surprised by your reaction. “I was just-”

“Fuck off!” you snapped.

Panicking, you saw the little notification below the picture turning from Received to Read.

No. No, no, no, no.

This was bad.

You didn’t want to overwhelm Jason by sending him photos of your activities, thinking that he might react badly to the sudden surplus of familiarity and sense of being close to someone. Now you were worried that he might start to push you away in fear, reverting back to how he was before, and months of progress would have been all for nothing.

He would probably start swearing at you, or worse- switch off the phone and reject any form of communication completely. You hurriedly texted a reply.

You: I’m so sorry! I didn’t send that, my friend was just messing around.

Expecting the worst, you braced yourself for the inevitable. Instead, he sent you:

Jason: Who the hell is that guy?? Jason: Why are you in your underwear??

Your mouth hung open as you stared in shock at the screen. Because you took so long to recover from the shock, he sent you another message.

Jason: ???

Snapping out of it, you texted back.

You: That’s just my friend. Sorry about that! And I’m not in my underwear, it’s a bikini! I’m in Hawaii.

You waited for him to reply, but ten minutes of you sitting anxiously on the turquoise sofa in the middle of the villa listening to the waves of the beach outside from the open doors passed by, and he still hadn’t.

Perhaps he’s busy- wait. There’s no way Jason would be busy. You tried to coax him into a conversation.

You: You can turn off your autocorrect if you want to swear without hassle. Go to your Keyboard settings.

You plopped your phone on the empty seat next to you and dried your hair.

“Ugh, come on!” complained Natalie, fully clothed and washed, walking towards the open concept kitchen from her room. “You’re getting sand everywhere!”

“Woops, my bad,” you grinned.

“There’s a shower outside on the porch for a reason you know,” she flipped her blond beach waves at you, looking through the fridge.

Alex stood quietly at the kitchen island, now scared to say anything.

You rolled your eyes. “Just don’t do it again.”

“Okay, I promise!” he grinned.

Ding.

Jason: fuck. fuck. fucking fuck. Jason: found it. You: Proud of you, man.

You went to your room and showered, then dried off and put on fresh clothes while waiting for Jason to reply.

Of course, he never did.

Groaning, you had to remind yourself that he was not used to human interaction, and texting would come unnaturally to him. Which meant that you had to be the one to keep the conversation going.

You: Do anything interesting since I left?

You saw him typing almost immediately this time.

Jason: no.

Of course not.

You: Have you been eating properly? Jason: yeah.

God, it was so difficult. You were in the middle of typing something when he replied again.

Jason: yoire not my mom Jason: yoire Jason: YOIRE Jason: FUCK WHY CANR I TYPE

You felt guilty for laughing, but you did anyway.

You: Now that you switched off autocorrect, it won’t correct your typos and misspells anymore. Jason: i fucking knw that. Ive been gone for two yeard not twenty. You: Then why do you sound like a grandpa? Jason: BECAISE YOU GAVE ME A FUCKINF IPHONE!! I USED AN ANDROID!!

Now you were really laughing out loud, so you sent him a GIF of a woman rolling her eyes.

Jason: wtf you can send gifs throug text now?? You: Welcome to 2020, my dude. Jason: im not your fucking dude

Typing a reply, Jason interrupted you once again.

Jason: teach me how to do that

Smiling widely, you found that you couldn’t wait for the next week to pass by so you could go back and see him.

***

“How’s Jason?” you asked the minute you reached the Cave computers, panting from the run down.

“Wow, hello to you, too,” Dick chuckled, spinning towards you on the wheeled chair.

It was a Sunday afternoon, and Bruce and Dick were in front of the computers, discussing a case that had connections to Bludhaven Police Department.

Gone for two weeks, you had a lot to catch up on.

“According to Alfred, he’s doing well,” Bruce answered, “Even started to ask for seconds last week. Now Alfred has been making portions for two.”

“He asked? For seconds?” you gasped. “How?”

“He left a note on the tray two days after you left. He’s been making meal requests, too. Texts Alfred in the morning to let him know.”

“Texted?!”

“Alfred slipped his number on the tray in case Jason wanted anything specific.”

“I slipped mine as well, but he hasn’t texted me yet,” Dick pouted.

“When did he start texting?” you ignored Dick.

“Last Sunday.”

So the same day you started texting him, then.

“He hasn’t texted me,” Dick sighed, looking dejected like a kid who was told Disneyland blew up.

“He’ll come around, Dick,” you offered him a smile, “I mean- he’s already texting Alfred!”

“Yeah,” he lamented.

“Okaaay, nice talk. I’m gonna go see him now, bye.”

You ran to the box, but stopped right before you opened the internal door. After checking your hair with your phone camera, you tried to stifle the butterflies in your stomach.

Ugh, you were so fucked.

Taking a deep breath, you knocked on the door.

“Yeah,” Jason’s muffled grunt answered you.

Pushing it open, your eyes immediately went to the bed only to find that he wasn’t lounging around reading a book like you expected. Instead, your mouth dropped open when you saw him on the floor, doing push ups.

Shirtless.

Jason had changed drastically during the two weeks you were gone. You noticed that he had definitely gained weight, as well as muscle mass.

“Uh, wh-what are you..?”

He stood up, and you swore your heart skipped a beat.

His muscles were much more prominent and defined now, and he looked like he was going to achieve Dick’s physique if he kept it up for another month or two.

“Welcome back,” he simply said before taking gulps from a water bottle you definitely had not seen before.

“Thanks,” you walked over and sat on his bed, “I’m glad to see that you decided to start taking care of yourself again.”

“What, this? This isn’t for me.”

“Huh?” you cocked your head in curiosity.

“I… I lost a lot of muscle mass. My body- it isn’t how it used to be,” he frowned, “And I can’t have you lusting over it when it’s not at its peak.”

“What- what do you-?” you stammered, suddenly getting hot.

Jason merely smirked and then continued his push ups.

You watched as his developing muscles rippled, a thin layer of sweat making his skin glisten in the light. It was amazing how he had progressed so much in such a short period of time. You guessed that he must have just been occupying his days by working out.

No wonder he’s been asking for seconds.

“Enjoying the view?” Jason breathed, pausing with his arms straightened, his head angled upwards towards you.

“No, shut up,” you looked away.

“Here, be useful,” he started, “Sit on my back.”

“What?”

“I’ve gotten used to my own body weight, I need extra resistance,” he elaborated, “Come on, sit on my back.”

“But it’s all sweaty,” you whined, pretending to protest. Definitely pretending- for the sake of your own dignity.

You got up and went over towards him anyway.

Carefully, awkwardly, you sat on his back as you would a park bench. You rested your palms flat against his sticky skin to stabilise yourself. Suddenly, he dipped down without warning, earning a soft squeal from you.

“Fuck, you’re heavy,” he strained, but continued to do the push ups. He was shakier, struggling with the weight, and after twenty-five, he paused. “Okay, I think I’m done.”

But before you had the chance to get off him, he suddenly stood up, throwing you off his back to have you fall on the floor on your ass.

“Jason, you assho-” you clapped your hand over your mouth, realising what you had just said.

Oh, no. Oh, fuck.

He stood towering over you, his jaw clenching as he stared you down with his cold, blue eyes.

“I’m so sorry! I forgot! It was a reflex and-”

“Whatever. I don’t care anymore,” he rolled his eyes, reaching for his bottle.

You blinked. Then scrambled to your feet.

“You don’t care anymore?” you repeated slowly.

“I don’t care if you call me that,” he huffed.

That made your heart swell and melt at the same time.

“I got used to your voice,” he mumbled, expression changing as he looked away. He frowned, as if he was angrily staring at a distant object.

You had just guessed that he didn’t like to be called his name because of a sense of familiarity, but now you were thinking that there was much more to that than what you had originally thought.

“So, I can call you… Jason?” you tested.

“Yeah, call me whatever you want,” he sat on his bed, looking up at you.

You smiled, thankful that you had finally crossed that bridge. “You know, I could get some workout stuff for you? Weights, bands, that bar thing that you can put at your door frame for pull ups…”

“You’d like to see that, huh?” he smirked.

“You flatter yourself too much,” you scoffed.

“How was Hawaii?” he changed the subject all of a sudden.

“It was fun. Beach was great, locals were great, loved the vibe- what are you doing?”

Jason had stood back up and started to walk closer and closer to you, getting all up in your space like a predator finally cornering its prey. You kept on taking steps back until your ass hit the edge of the desk.

Nowhere else to run, your heart started hammering. He leaned in, his hands resting on the desk on either side of your body, trapping you against the table and himself. You looked up and gulped. You could almost feel the heat radiating from his bare skin.

“Are you afraid of me?” he muttered lowly.

“Why would I be afraid of you?” you whispered.

“You tell me,” he said.

“Well, I’m not afraid of you,” you stated.

“Oh really?” he raised an eyebrow. Then, you felt his hand grip your wrist tightly, pressing down on your skin with his fingers. “Your pulse is very fast for someone who’s not afraid of me.”

“It’s because you’re all up in my space!” you argued.

“Didn’t look like you mind when your friend,” he snarled the word, “was all up in your space.”

“My friend? What- oh,” you widen your eyes in realisation, “You mean Alex.”

“Is that his name?”

“Alex is just a friend, nothing more. He’s just someone I’m close to,” you reassured him.

Which then made you think about why you were reassuring him.

“Oh, you were definitely close to him,” Jason growled.

“Wait- are you… jealous?” a smile creeped your lips.

He scowled at you for a few moments, and you could see the little tics in his expression that said he was annoyed. The flared nostrils, the muscles of his jaw clenching and unclenching, the very slight twitches at the corner of his left eye.

“No,” he finally said, taking a step back from you. “I’m going to shower. Since you couldn’t stop staring at me, the invitation is still open for you to join.”

“You know, I’m starting to think that maybe I prefer it when you were broody instead of this. Please go back to your depressive mental state,” you sarcastically replied.

Jason barked out an actual laugh. Though his laugh was odd, like someone who’s only now discovering that humans were indeed capable of laughter, you found comfort in it. It was no longer hysterical and devoid of humor. He was getting better, learning to embrace a connection with someone, and it made you extremely happy.

“Maybe I should,” he answered with a cheeky glint in his eye, “Then that way you can give me more sponge baths.”

He left you alone in his room, flushed and at a loss for words.

***

“I find it very odd that people would yell ‘Batman!’ when they realise you’re there,” you rambled while climbing out of the Batmobile.

You were absolutely drenched from the downpour that had been going on all night. It was 4 am on a friday night and you had just returned from patrol.

Bruce took off his cowl immediately, revealing tired eyes despite the relatively slow night.

“It’s like they’re saying ‘Look at me! I’m here! Please knock me out or hang me upside down from the-’ Bruce?”

Bruce had stiffen, staring at something behind you. You turned around and was shocked to see Jason in the mid-distance, sitting on the ground outside the black box that was his room, leaning against the cool metal.

He himself was staring intently at Bruce, not even sparing you a glance.

You looked back and forth between the two men, sensing a high tension silent conversation.

Then, Bruce’s eyes relaxed and the corners of his mouth twitched upwards ever so slightly in that hardly-there-Bruce-smile.

He gave Jason one stiff nod of understanding, then walked away to the computers at the other end of the cave, leaving you alone with his son.

Jason relaxed as you walked over to him, wringing your hair to squeeze out all the excess water.

“Aw, you waited up for me,” you teased, standing in front of him with your hands on your hips, grinning away.

“Fuck off,” he snorted, “I was bored.”

You noticed him clenching his jaw as he looked at you from top to bottom, eyes lingering longer on the ‘R’ on your left breast.

Ah, it was his first time seeing you in your uniform.

His uniform.

Suddenly, you felt like an imposter in those colors and had the strong urge to rip the uniform off.

You wanted to say something, but Jason beat you to it.

“There were times in that shit hole where I wanted to burn that uniform off my skin,” he grit, “Kept on thinking to myself. I wish I never became Robin. I wish I never met Bruce Wayne.”

Your heart shattered at his confession. It was extremely rare for him to bring up anything related to his two year torture, and the previous times were never in such detail.

Realising you needed to say something, you opened your mouth. “I’m so-”

“Don’t,” he cut you off, “You don’t have to say anything.”

Yes, sometimes you knew that he just wanted you to listen.

You nodded silently and went to sit next to him on the floor.

“It… suits you,” he forced out.

“Hmm?”

“The uniform. It suits you. More than it ever suited me,” he grumbled.

“Oh, I don’t know about that. I think your ass would look quite nice in green,” you joked, nudging his shoulder with your own.

He chuckled deeply, nudging you back even harder- hard enough for you to lose your balance and topple sideways, earning another breathy laugh from Jason.

***

Another month passed by, and you found yourself falling deeply for Jason- much to your dismay. You knew Jason wasn’t ready for any kind of intense emotions, and that it would take a very long time before he was.

So you swallowed your emotions down, stifling them and hoping it would go away.

The two of you had developed a pleasant friendship, often bickering and joking around, with Jason teasing you about your obvious physical attraction to him.

He also now occasionally waited outside his cube for you to come back after patrol, never really venturing too far from it, and still avoiding contact with both Bruce and Dick. Only you and Alfred had the privilege to speak to him.

Even then, sometimes you would visit his room but only getting a “I’m not feeling it today. Please leave.”

Understandingly, you would nod silently and leave him alone. You knew he still had his bad days, sometimes not eating his meals.

But mostly, he was getting better, both mentally and physically.

With nothing much to do the whole day, Jason was now obsessed with working out and bulking up. He now had a few simple equipment in his room- mostly weights.

You figured that it was a coping mechanism for him, a healthy outlet to channel all his rage and negative emotions into.

But come on. He was getting even hotter and it was making it extremely difficult for you to stop yourself from checking him out, fantasizing about him when he wasn’t around. Still, you couldn’t complain. Even though he hadn’t reached Dick’s size yet, he was very near to it, and his naturally bigger body frame and build made up for the still developing muscles.

Hell, he was now sporting a six pack.

But you knew that he was still not as well as you hoped he would be. The bloodshot eyes he had was proof that he doesn’t sleep well- and you soon found out why.

It was a little past midnight on your night off from patrol, and you were using your break in the best way you could think of- by sleeping. Something woke you up that night.

A soft knock on your door.

You frowned, eyes still closed, wondering who it was.

Bruce would usually knock twice. Strong, clear, and with purpose. Dick would start pounding rapidly on your door, annoying you intentionally. Alfred would give three soft knocks followed by a ‘Miss?’

Your eyes flew open. There was only one other person in the manor.

Throwing your covers aside, you jumped out of bed and rushed to the door to open it.

Jason stood outside your door in the dim lights of the hallway, frowning and running his fingers nervously through his messy dark hair. He was wearing a t-shirt with boxers, standing awkwardly.

“Jason?” you hated how your voice sounded so sleepy. You cleared your throat. “Are you okay? Would you like to come in?”

He nodded silently, and you made way for him to enter before closing the door behind you.

“Sit on the bed,” you told him while jumping back into yours, sitting up cross legged.

The bed dipped when he sat on it, copying your motion and crossed his legs.

You waited for him to say something, your eyes straining to catch his in the dark. But he just remained silent, staring into space and avoiding your eyes.

“How did you know this was my room?” you asked, starting with a light topic.

“Only one that was locked. I already know where everyone else sleeps,” he explained.

“That’s right,” you realised, “I tend to forget that you’re probably even more familiar with the manor than I am.”

“Did you know there’s an old dumbwaiter in Bruce’s room?” you saw him smirk from the shadows that was casted on his face, “I used to hide in there, waiting to catch him off guard.”

“What? Why?”

“Dick and I, we had a bet,” he recalled the memory, “Whoever gets to surprise Bruce first would owe the other a special favor. Only rule was that we had to have it on video as proof.”

You appreciated that moment, the first time he ever spoke about both Dick and Bruce as a fond memory.

“I won, by the way,” he continued, “But- I forgot to press record on my phone.”

“Oh, no,” you groaned for him.

“Yeah, and Dick refused to believe me,” he chuckled, “That old man didn’t want to admit it either. But I swear- the look on his face when I jumped out while he and some model were going at it- priceless.”

Your jaw dropped, and then you burst into a fit of laughter, tears filling your eyes.

“You- you- you jumped out on him while he was having sex?!” you squealed.

“Yeah,” he grinned, “I didn’t even care that it sort of scarred me, because I managed to catch Batman off guard.”

The both of you laughed, his deep voice mingling with your own on that quiet night.

“I’m glad you’re here, Jason,” you smiled warmly at him.

But then, his smile fell.

“I hate my name now.”

“I’m sorry,” you began, “You said it was okay to call you that, so I-”

“No, it’s fine,” he started running his fingers through his hair again, “It’s just- I don’t know.”

“You can tell me anything,” you reassured, “It won’t leave this room. I promise.”

He looked at you, worry in his eyes. “Okay. Fine. Yeah.”

You waited for him to begin.

He took a deep breath. “I’ve been having nightmares. Almost every night. It’s always the same one.”

“You want to tell me about it?” you prompted him after waiting for him to continue.

“I hate my name because he said it a lot. Joker,” he scowled, “After repeatedly burning my skin for my name, it’s like that’s all he said. In that annoying, high pitched, sing-song voice of his. Jason, Jason, Jason. It made me hate my name. It made me hate hearing it.”

“I- I didn’t know how much time passed when I was in there,” he continued, “But, fuck. It was- it was hell. And the worst part was that I kept on waiting for Bruce. Waiting and hoping for him to find me and save me. I was so desperate. You- I-”

He choked on his words. His eyes were squeezed shut and his lips tight.

You wanted to reach out to him, hug him, tell him that everything was okay now. But you didn’t. You waited for him to collect himself so he could finish telling you his story, just like how he wanted to.

“Anyway, I- despite all that,” he sighed, “That was the only thing that kept me sane. I kept on clinging onto the hope that he was out there, searching. And that helped for a while. Until- until that happened.”

He was breathing heavily now, fidgeting more. Jason was definitely getting increasingly agitated the deeper he went.

“Fuck,” he breathed, “Fuck.”

The moment you realised he was crying was when he let out a sniffle. You automatically took his hand in yours, squeezing it as a form of comfort.

“It’s okay,” you told him, “You don’t have to tell me if you’re not ready.”

“No,” he shook his head, “I need to. I have to. I can’t take this anymore. Keeping everything in, I feel like I’m about to fucking explode.”

“Okay, then take it slow,” you said, “No rush. Anytime you’re ready.”

He nodded, eyes still closed, as if he was afraid of letting you see him cry.

“One night,” he began, “I think- I don’t know what was different- but I think something went wrong for him. Or right? That’s how it was. Tormenting me was fun, but it was also an outlet for him. But at the same time when he was happy, he also tortured me. He came to me, and- injected me with some sort of drug. That never happened before. He made sure that my head was clear whenever he hurt me so that I could feel everything he did.”

“But- he did- and- immediately, I felt weak,” he continued, “I mean, I was already weak. But my head. It was cloudy. I remember everything clearly, but it was like my brain couldn’t process it, couldn’t communicate with my body. I felt like I was looking out through a window that was my eyes- like I was in someone else’s body, experiencing someone else’s moments.”

“He released me,” Jason’s voice was now barely a whisper. “He released me from the ropes, and I fell to the floor. And then he- he- fuck.”

He let go of your hand and started pulling at his hair, rocking back and forth on your bed. He was sobbing now, his shoulders jerking up in sharp intakes of breaths. The only thing you could do was to stay silent and hold back your own tears.

You rested your hand on his knee, giving him a textile connection with reality so he doesn’t fall into his own thoughts.

“You- he- he- ruh- ruhp-”

Your heart sank to your stomach in horror as you realised what Jason was trying to say. It was as if you were plunged into icy water, chills running down your spine at the true revelation of what he had gone through in that cursed cell.

“Oh, no,” you breathed.

“He pushed me down,” he choked, “Pushed me down and climbed on top. I- I couldn’t even fight him. I was- I was conscious the whole time and I knew what was happening, but I couldn’t fucking do anything.”

Your tears were falling down now, both at the sight of Jason looking so vulnerable and fragile, and at his confession. Not being able to help yourself, you threw your arms over his neck and crashed into his hard body, burying your face in the crook of his shoulder.

His arms immediately wrapped around you, clutching you so hard it was painful as he buried his own face into your shoulder.

“And he kept on saying my name,” he said in muffled cries, “Jason, Jason, Jason. The whole fucking time. And- and I knew. He didn’t do it for pleasure. He did it to torment me. He- he didn’t even- he didn’t even finish.”

Jason sobbed into your skin for the next few minutes, his tears soaking through your night shirt. “But I did. Even though it was painful. Fuck, the pain was worse than anything he had ever done to me before. But- he- I- I fucking came.”

The both of you were sobbing now, his ragged breaths mingling together with your own on that quiet night.

His grip on you was tight, as if he thought that if he let go, you would disappear. So he clung onto you with all his might to keep you there with him as he recalled the horrific events.

“That's what broke me. I was so disgusted with myself. I hated myself. And he- he saw everything and- and laughed. He laughed so hard, I thought he was going to choke and die. I’ve never seen him laugh like that. And I remember every single fucking moment of being helpless on that fucking floor while he- fuck. Fuck.”

“And then he left. He left me on the floor bleeding and I never saw him again. And I went fucking insane. I tried to kill myself so many fucking times. So many times, I lost count. That’s what I dream about every night. His laughs, and his ‘Jason, Jason, Jason’.”

And that was that. That was the story.

The end of Jason Todd.

The both of you cried long and hard that night in each other’s arms. Eventually, you both lied down on the pillows together, underneath the covers.

“Please don’t tell Bruce,” he whispered to you.

Your head was on his chest, his big arms wrapped around your waist, your legs tangled with his.

You smiled at that. Even with the trauma, even with the sense of abandonment he felt, he still wanted to protect Bruce from knowing the truth.

Because the both of you knew that the truth would kill him.

“I promise,” you whispered back.

And then the both of you fell asleep together.

***

“Has Jason been sleeping in your room with you?” Bruce asked you on one fine Saturday morning at breakfast.

It had been about a week and a half since the first time Jason knocked on your door and poured out his feelings to you.

“He gets nightmares,” you tried to explain.

He thought that if he told you everything, the nightmares would stop. But it didn’t. But he then realised that the only thing that made it better was sleeping by your side, having someone there to wake him up from living his own hell in a loop.

“And do the two of you… Just sleep?” Bruce frowned.

“Yes!” you widen your eyes in horror at the insinuation. “Bruce! Come on!”

“I know you have feelings for him, and I’m sure he does for you as well. But I don’t think something like that is what Jason needs right now,” he stated.

“Yes, I know!” you groaned at the thought having that kind of conversation with him, “Jesus, Bruce. I know. I’m just there to wake him up or help him fall back asleep. Nothing more.”

Bruce nodded, deep in thought. “Has he… told you? About what happened?”

You pursed your lips. “Yes.”

“You’re not going to tell me?”

“No.”

“Hmm,” his frown went deeper. “I understand. He will tell me when he is ready.”

“Exactly,” you smiled, hiding the fact that Jason may never tell Bruce what happened. Never the full story.

“He still hasn’t left the manor?”

“No,” you sighed, “I asked him if he wanted some fresh air. Just outside the main door, not even going down the steps. But he refused. Told me to, and I quote, ‘Fuck off’.”

“Well, he’s only just left the cave, and it’s just to your room,” Bruce thought out loud, “It’s still progress. Especially since he’s been talking to you about the past.”

“He only spoke about it one time,” you said, “And then never again.”

“I see,” he hummed, “And you’re okay with him sleeping with you?”

“Next to me, Bruce, sleeping next to me,” you corrected.

“Yes, and you’re okay with that?”

“Yeah, it’s all good,” you assured him, “I can kick him out any time I want- but I don’t want to. He looks like a lost puppy sometimes.”

“An angry lost puppy.”

You chuckled at that and couldn’t agree more.

*** While Jason got the sleep he needed when he was next to you, it was counterproductive on your end. You had never been with anyone before, and definitely had not slept on the same bed with another man.

So to feel his body heat and breaths against your skin, his occasional light snores, it made your mind go on hyperdrive.

Most of the time, the two of you would just lie down, your back against his front, or your backs against each other, or both on your backs just staring at the ceiling- and talked. You would be the one talking the most, of course, about anything you could think of. You would tell him about your day, your patrols, something you read about online, or the current news.

But that one particular night during week three of him sleeping next to you, the two of you were silent. It wasn’t an awkward or uncomfortable silence, but the kind of silence that was pleasant and was better described as a peaceful quiet.

You had your back pressed against his front and his arm was lazily draped over your waist. It was a cold night, and you were wearing just a tank top and pyjama shorts, snuggling under the covers that went up all the way to your nose.

Shifting a bit while snuggling comfortably, you pressed yourself against Jason’s body to get more of his heat. But then, you were met with something poking against your lower back.

“Ngh, please ignore that,” Jason huffed.

Oh.

For some reason, you forgot that Jason was a physically healthy male who was capable of having sexual thoughts and feelings. All this while, you thought you were the only one.

“Are you- uh- is that- uh-” you stuttered, feeling your face flush with heat.

Feeling your body suddenly alert with excitement.

“Yes, it’s my fucking penis,” he grit almost angrily, “What, never heard of an erection before?”

“Of course I have!” you argued rather defensively, “It’s just- I’m surprised, that’s all.”

“Why?” he demanded, “You didn’t think I could get it up or something?”

“No, of course not!” you denied, “It just didn’t cross my mind, that’s all.”

A pause. Then-

“Well,” he sighed, “You wouldn’t have been wrong.”

Your mind blanked for a second.

“What do you mean?” you asked softly.

“It’s my- fuck- it’s my first time,” he confessed.

“Your first time getting an erection?” you gasped.

“No, you idiot,” he snapped, “It’s my first time getting hard since… since… then.”

Oh. Oh, you were an idiot.

“It’s just- after that- even when I was downstairs, alone and safe, I- I couldn’t,” he told you, “I kept on thinking back to that time and- and I couldn’t. I found it disgusting.”

And immediately, like someone doused you in cold water, any feeling of horniness you had when you first felt his erection against you disappeared. You just felt so sad for him, but also angry. Angry that he had to go through all of that, and angrier that there was nothing you could do about it.

“So, why do you think you’re getting it now?” you asked. Perhaps talking about it in an objective manner would help guide him through his thought process.

“Are you kidding me?” he scoffed, “You’re fucking pressing your ass against my dick, what did you think would happen?”

“Wait, what?” your eyes widen, “You’re hard because of me?”

“No shit,” he said, “You’re hardly wearing any clothes, too.”

You shouldn’t feel happy due to the circumstance and context, but there you were ecstatic that he found you attractive enough to pop a boner after so long.

“Fuck,” he sighed, suddenly pressing himself closer to you.

His hand that draped over your waist when to actually grip it. Then, then, he grinded his hard on against your ass.

“Mmm,” he rumbled deeply, “Feels good.”

There. That was it. You were once again flooded with the feeling of heat that pooled at your stomach, a tingling sensation started at your core. Feeling hot despite the low temperature of the night, you clenched your thighs together, needing the slight pressure.

“Yeah?” you whispered.

“Yeah,” he grinded on you again, and then unexpectedly let out a chuckle.

“What is it?” you smiled, loving it whenever you heard him laugh.

“I thought… For the longest time, I thought I was broken. That he broke me,” he revealed, “I thought I needed to get all Wingardium Leviosa on this little fucker.”

“Oh my God,” you laughed and groaned at the same time, “You’re so fucking embarassing.”

He laughed along with you and continued. “But now I’m hard and- and horny. You made me feel like I’m normal again. Like I’m sixteen again, and getting horny over everything.”

Sometimes, we take the normal things for granted. Food, shelter, clothes. In this case, it was a goddamned boner. In a way, Jason’s erection was symbolic- however funny it sounded. Getting your sexual appetite and need back after being so traumatised was a massive leap for many people who had experienced the same thing.

It meant that Jason was healing well.

“Does that make you happy?” you asked.

“Not particularly,” he admitted, “But I’m definitely not sad either.”

“That’s good enough for now, then,” you beamed.

“Yeah,” he breathed.

Another few moments of silence. You could feel it, his cock pushing into you. However tempted you were to push back and grind, you held yourself still.

“Uh, Jason?” you voiced.

“Yeah.”

“Do you want to like, take care of it?” you asked, “I mean. My bathroom is available. Or- there are many empty rooms.”

“No,” he simply stated.

“No?”

“No.”

“It’s kinda poking into me.”

“Just ignore it.”

“Ignore it?” you gaped, “How can I ignore it? You’re literally pressing it into my ass.”

“Well, then do you want to take care of it?” he teased.

You couldn’t argue back. “Fine, I’ll ignore it.”

He chuckled. “I’ll turn around.”

When he made the movement, you suddenly grabbed him by the wrist. “No, it’s fine. Stay here.”

You expected him to tease you like he usually would, make a crass comment, or even a ‘fuck off’.

Instead, he wrapped his arms around you again in silence, and the both of you drifted to sleep.

***

“Do you think this color suits me?” Natalie asked, holding up a floral red dress.

The four of you were at the mall in Diamond District. Now that high school was over, and everyone would be going off to separate colleges in a few months, you tried to spend time with each other as much as you could.

“Any color suits you, Nat,” you rolled your eyes, “You’re hot stuff.”

“Jesus, it’s like you’re shoving it in our faces at this point,” Sarah added, flipping her brunette hair to the side, tight curls flowing down.

“Aw, you guys,” Nat pretended to tear up, “I’m gonna miss you guys so much!”

“Not again,” Alex groaned, “We’ve been through this so many times.”

“I’m gonna be so miserable without you guys,” Natalie continued on, ignoring Alex’s interruption.

“I don’t know,” Sarah shrugged, “I think I’d enjoy New York. I can have pizza parties with the rats in my overpriced apartment.”

You chuckled at Sarah’s joke. Everyone was leaving Gotham except you. Deciding to continue with Robin, you opted for Gotham University- prestigious, old, and most importantly, close to home.

Your phone dinged in your pocket. You opened it to find texts from Dick.

Dick: OH MY GOD. Dick: I’m at the Manor. Dick: Was going to the Cave gym to work out. Dick: AND Dick: JASON IS HERE!!! WHAT DO I DO?!?!

That was new. Jason would usually just use whatever basic equipment he had in his room to work out. The fact that he was at the Cave’s sparring area where all the other fancier work out equipment were was out of the ordinary.

You: Just go. See if he reacts. If he suddenly stiffens and just stay there not doing anything, then leave. If he continues on, then it’s okay to stay- but don’t initiate anything! Dick: OKOKOK

You waited anxiously for Dick’s update. All four of you were now walking towards the food court, but you hardly listened to their bickering. Forty-five minutes passed before Dick texted you again.

Dick: OMG HE TALKED TO ME You: What did he say? Dick: He asked me to pass him his towel. You: That’s all he said? Dick: IT’S PROGRESS OKAY!!

Dick was right. It meant that Dick was now the third person Jason had spoken to. Adding another person to his list of contacts was definitely progress.

You were happy for him.

You:Is he still there? Dick: Nah he left Dick: But WOW he’s looking good. He must have been really going at it. I think he might get bigger than me soon You: All he does now is work out. He’s obsessed. Dick: Yeah I can tell

You decided to leave it at that for now and try to concentrate on your friends, but Dick sent another message.

Dick: ARE YOU TWO HAVING SEX?!?!

You spat out your drink, earning weird looks from everyone.

You: DICK!!!! WTF NO!!

Dick never replied.

***

“Can I ask you for a favor?” Jason asked, his voice breaking the silence of your dark room. The two of you were on your bed, lying down and staring at the ceiling.

“Of course,” you said. It didn’t matter to you what Jason asks for. He hardly ever asked for anything.

“Could you… Take me out tomorrow?” he requested, “If you’re not doing anything else, that is.”

“Uh, sure!” you nodded, surprised. “Where do you want to go?”

“Anywhere,” he shrugged, “It doesn’t matter.”

“Yeah, okay,” you hesitated, “But- are you sure? I mean, you don’t have to go so far so quickly. Maybe you should start with just going to the backyard?”

“No, I’ll be fine,” he insisted. “I’m not a kid.”

“Okay then,” you agreed. “Tomorrow.”

You kept on glancing anxiously at him the next day as he climbed into the passenger seat of your car. He was quiet, but looked perfectly fine.

Switching the engine on, you drove out of the garage and out the large automatic gates. Trees soon surrounded the lonely road on both sides as you descended downhill into town.

“So where are we going?” he asked.

“I thought Robinson Park would be nice,” you said. It was around three in the afternoon, yet Gotham was dark as though the day was ending. It was cloudy, skies grey and wind blowing.

“You’re taking me to a park?” he scoffed.

“It’s more quiet than anywhere else,” you reasoned with him, “Less people. Spacious. Lots of greenery.”

“Whatever.”

Reaching the parking space of the park, you noticed that there were a few cars. Mothers and nannies liked to bring children out to the park around that time. Joggers and teens, college students and retired elderly seeking a little escape from the high rise buildings of concrete and glass.

You turned the engine off and proceeded to open the door, only then noticing Jason stiffening. Looking over to him, you saw that his eyebrows were pulled down in a deep frown, his jaw clenched, his hands in fists on his knees.

You didn’t say anything or make any comment. Leaning back into your seat, you waited until Jason was ready.

About five minutes passed before he took a deep breath, gave you a nod, and then opened his door.

The two of you walked along a path at the park, going deeper inside and further away from your car. There were a few joggers around, some tourists, and some teens taking photos. You saw a group of kids in the distance playing frisbee, and the others were walking their dogs.

An empty bench stood in the middle of the park, overlooking a clearing. You headed there, Jason following closely behind.

“It’s a bit gloomy today,” you pouted, “As if Gotham could be anything other than that, of course.”

You looked at Jason.

He looked like a scared dog being brought out for the first time.

His jittery knees were bouncing rapidly, his wide eyes were darting at every movement, his forehead was covered with a thin layer of sweat, and his breathing was heavy.

“Woah, woah,” you reached out to him, putting an arm on his back. “It’s okay. I’m here. Just listen to me talk, yeah?”

“Yeah,” he gulped.

“Try to calm your breathing,” you instructed, “Deep breaths, Jason. In… out… In… Out… Yeah, see that’s great.”

“Yeah,” he breathed, now calmer. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” you smiled warmly, “You’re doing just fine.”

“No, I’m not,” he strained, “I feel like everything is too big. Too vast. The fucking sky looks like it’s going to crash down on me and at the same time suck me up into a void.”

“And despite all you’re feeling right now, you’re not breaking down or anything, are you?” you tried, “You’re okay, Jason. This is progress.”

“I guess,” he sighed, “I’m just- I’m so used to having four walls and a ceiling. Now everything feels too big.”

“I understand,” you empathized, “Whenever you want to go back, just say the word. Or we can even just go and sit in the car. No problem.”

“Yeah, okay, let’s do that,” he stood up.

The walk back to the car was faster.

“Fuck, I’m so fucking pathetic,” he said, running his fingers through his hair.

“No, you’re not,” you reassured him, “That was great, Jason. Come on, it was your first time outside in two years and a half. Cut yourself some slack.”

“I’m so fucking broken,” he choked.

“Don’t say that,” you scolded, “You’re not broken. And you know what, even if you think you are, we can always fix it. Baby steps. Maybe we can do this once a week. We were out for like, ten minutes? Next week we’ll try fifteen. How’s that sound?”

“Twice a week,” he stated, “I just want to be normal again.”

“Okay, twice a week, then,” you agreed, “We’ll try again in a couple of days, okay?”

“Okay,” he paused, “Thank you.”

“No problemo,” you grinned, “Would you like to stay here a bit longer or shall we go back?”

“Let’s go back.”

“Wanna stop by the diner? You can wait in the car while I ask for a take-away?”

“...okay.”

***

Jason and you had gone out twice more. Once three days after the first time, and the other a week later. The second time he went out, he lasted twenty minutes, though you were sure he was being stubborn on his part. He looked like he was having a heart attack, but he insisted on staying until he hit the twenty minute mark.

The third time, he was much much better. Surprisingly so. The two of you sat down on that bench for half an hour, with you even leaving him alone for a few minutes to get two ice cream cones.

After that, you took him for a drive around the city. He seemed to be more comfortable in the car, so you went all the way from Robinson Park to Diamond District, and back to the manor.

Bruce seemed very pleased with your update, and you swore you could see him actually smile.

“Thank you,” he had told you. “You’ve done more than I could have ever asked of you.”

“It’s no problem, Bruce. Really,” you reassured him.

“I’m his father. He is my responsibility. It’s my fault he’s even in that state. I wish I could do more for him,” he said solemnly.

“The fact that you understand what he needs is more than helpful, Bruce,” you smiled, “Not many parents can do that. You understand and respect him. That’s enough for now.”

He simply nodded.

Ever since your scheduled outings, Jason had become more and more relaxed whenever he was in the manor. He now walked to the kitchen on occasion to mess with Alfred while he cooked meals for him, sometimes sitting in the living room lounging on the couch while reading. Most of the time, though, he was down at the sparring zone of the Cave, working out.

But at night, he would never fail to knock on your door.

And at that particular night, you found yourself in the same situation again while lying down on your side with your back to his front, for the fifth time.

“You officially have to stop calling yourself broken,” you grumbled, “Because that thing poking into my ass is definitely not broken.”

He chuckled lowly. “You complaining, sweetheart?”

Oh, and yes. Jason now had started calling you ‘sweetheart’. Why? You had no clue. It was just a thing that happened. The look on your face when he first slipped it in was probably a sight to behold.

“No shit, I’m complaining, Jason,” you groaned, “You haven’t jerked off, yet? Not even once?”

“Nope,” he popped the P, “I just… I don’t want to… I don’t want to come.”

You sighed, understanding the situation. He had been disgusted with himself because he had ejaculated when Joker… Well, that. You hated to even think about it, so you always shoved the thought away.

“But unfortunately for me, I still get super horny,” he rumbled deeply, pushing his hips into you even more, “So fucking horny.”

“And then I have to suffer,” you complained.

“I can assure you, blue balls are more painful than something poking into you,” he bickered.

“It’s not that…”

“Then?”

“I get horny too, come on man,” you whined, “I’m a hormonal teenage girl. What did you expect?”

“You get horny too?” he whispered after a pause.

“Uh, yeah,” you admitted nervously. Somehow, the mood shifted, and your heart started drumming against your chest.

“Because of me?” he asked.

“Not you specifically, I mean,” you tried to back track, “You’re… Your dick pressing up against me like that, I mean, come on, Jason.”

“Simple question sweetheart,” he told you, “You get horny because of me, yes or no?”

You gulped. “Yes.”

Fuck, why did you say yes? You could have lied. You could have not answered.

“Yeah?” he breathed. You noticed that his hand was now on your hip, right above the waistband of your sleeping shorts, drawing circles onto your skin with his thumb.

You were nervous. The butterflies in your tummy was not helping you calm down.

“Yeah,” you squeezed your eyes shut, as if to protect yourself from anything he had to say.

“Fuck,” he groaned, gripping your hips and grinding his hard on against your ass even more. And did it… Fuck, did it get even harder?

Afraid of saying the wrong thing, and also out of nervousness, you remained silent. Jason’s chest rose and fall against your back, his respiratory rate increasing. His pinky finger slid underneath the waistband, testing the waters before slowly slipping his hand into your pants.

He went in so slowly, as if waiting for you to tell him no, to rip his hand away, to wrench yourself away from him. But you never did, so he went in deeper, caressing the skin beneath your pelvic bone, his heat just burning into you.

“You’re not wearing any underwear,” he commented, voice suddenly husky.

“I don’t wear them to bed,” you informed him.

“You mean to tell me,” he growled, “That all this while I’ve been sleeping next to you and you never had your panties on?”

“It’s more comfortable that way,” you mumbled.

“Jesus Christ,” he cursed. “Thank God I never knew. Would have been torture, and trust me, I know what I’m talking about.”

“Jason,” you gasped.

“It’s true,” he said, “Damn, sweetheart.”

He went lower, closer to your center.

Your core was tingly, small pulses of electricity buzzed through your body as Jason came closer and closer and closer and-

He slipped his hands between your closed thighs and cupped you.

“Mmm,” he moaned softly, “Warm. Fuzzy.”

“Fuzzy?” you laughed, even though you felt like screaming on the inside. Screaming for more.

“Yeah,” he mumbled, burying his face into your nape, taking a deep breath. “You smell nice.”

Oh, shit. You totally forgot about Jason’s aversion to strong smells.

“I’m sorry!” you quickly apologised, “I can switch to an unscented shampoo as well so it wouldn’t be too strong for you.”

“It’s fine,” he said, “I like it on you.”

He ground his hand into your center harder.

“Mmpf, Jay,” you breathed, “What are you doing?”

“I don’t know,” he confessed, “I’ve never touched a girl like this before.”

“Really?” you widen your eyes in surprise.

“I was kept in a cell for two years, I couldn’t exactly talk, let alone touch, anyone can I?” he quipped.

“Right.”

“Teach me,” he said.

“What?” you whispered despite knowing what he meant.

A pause of silence. A deep intake of breath, a slow exhale.

“Teach me how to touch you,” he purred.

Fuck, you felt like exploding.

“Are you sure?” you asked.

“Yes. If you… If you want to.”

Your mind quickly tried to analyse the situation. Bruce had specifically said that Jason didn’t need any complicated matters in the relationship. It made sense. You didn’t want to overwhelm Jason with any confusion or uncertainty.

But at the same time, you’ve been figuring out how Jason thought, bit by bit. He’s told you many times that he just wanted to be normal again, to feel normal, to do normal things. And this was something that was normal, that he should do, that he wanted to do.

And you knew that he probably would take the rejection even worse.

“O-Okay,” you agreed.

Slowly, you separated your thighs, raising the one on top and hooking it over his legs behind you. Due to your shift in position, you felt the minute Jason’s fingers dip slightly into your folds.

“So, uh, this is my first time with a guy as well,” you squeaked, “But I’ll try to guide you.”

You licked your lips.

“Uhm, well, I guess you can start by running a finger up and down between my- oh! Yes, just like that.”

His middle finger slid down to your opening, and then up again slowly. His movements were uncertain, brushing only slightly against your clit unintentionally.

It was different, having someone else touch you. Somehow, despite the inexperience, it just felt better.

“Holy fuck,” he gasped, “You’re so fucking wet. Do you usually get this wet?”

You felt your cheeks heat up. “No? Yes? I don’t know! I can’t feel it.”

“Shit.”

You let him play with you some more, his fingers sliding up and down, sometimes pressing against your fleshy parts, sometimes circling and gathering your wetness, sometimes just parting your lips. Hell, he even tapped the tips of his fingers on you randomly or brushed into your delicate fuzz. You knew he was just exploring, feeling you for the first time.

And that thought made you smile and sigh.

“Teach me how to make you feel good,” he rasped.

“Uh, so your fingers are wet, right?”

“Yeah. Because you’re leaking all over them.”

“Okay, good. Now find my clit. It’s slightly above your finger, okay, to the left a bit. More. Okay, there! Yeah, right there,” you sighed, finally feeling that delicious pressure.

“Here?”

He tapped your clit.

“Ah!” you moaned, “Yes- but don’t just- nevermind, just gently circle it. Clockwise.”

He obeyed, and hell since when did Jason just obey?

He circled you gently, like you said. But he also went so, so slow.

“Faster, Jay,” you panted.

He went faster, making you groan in pleasure.

“Like this, sweetheart?” he muttered, his voice low and cracking, and sexy, and husky. You’ve never heard him sound like that before, and it drove you wild.

“Yeah,” you breathed, “Yeah, just like that. Fuck.”

“Feel good?”

“So good, Jay. Press a little harder now- fuck. Fuck. Yes, perfect. Just like that.”

The pressure built as his fingers did their magic.

“You- you’re surprisingly good at that,” you stuttered, “You sure- mmm- you sure you’ve never done this before?”

“Despite what you think,” he husked in your ear, warm breath tickling you. “I’m very good at following instructions.”

“I can see that.”

“But I’m also good at improvising.”

“Wha- oh. Oh. Fuck! Jason! Oh my fucking god!”

He started pressing even harder, and going even faster, throwing away the slow build you were going for and instead pushing you towards orgasm fast and hard, as if he was determined to prove something to you.

“Feel good, sweetheart?” he purred, “You gonna come soon?”

“Oh my- fuck, yes! Fuck, don’t stop!”

“You want to come for me?” his deep voice rumbled.

“Yes!”

What the hell? When did he learn how to talk like that?

Because with the mix of his heavy pants, his low voice coaxing you, his barrage of pleasure at your clit, you felt the familiar tightening of your core. You threw one hand back and found his hair. Running your fingers through them, you gripped them tight and pulled.

You pulled on his hair as he forced the orgasm onto you.

“Oh my God. Jason, I’m gonna- fuck- I’m- fuck- ah!”

You moaned loudly as you felt your walls flutter, clenching over nothing as you reached your high.

“O-okay, stop, fuck,” your hand went from his hair to his wrist, stilling him. He withdrew his hands from your pants, and went to grip you tight again by the waist.

“Fucking hell, sweetheart,” he groaned, grinding into you. You pushed your ass back, feeling his hardened length against your flesh in your post-orgasm bliss. “Jesus, that was so hot.”

“That was- yeah,” you giggled, “Fuck.”

His face was still buried in your neck. You could feel his lips on your skin.

“Uhm, I can, you know,” you sputtered, “Try to help you out?”

“It’s fine,” he breathed, body still tight against yours, “Just go to sleep.”

“Are you sure?” you asked again, feeling guilty that he didn’t get off. “I don’t mind.”

“I do,” he said, “It’s okay, sweetheart. That was great. I enjoyed that. I told you, I don’t want to come.”

“Okay,” you sighed.

“Go to bed.”

“Thank you, Jason.”

“Fuck, I’m so horny.”

“Jason,” you whined, “Really, I can help-”

“I’m kidding,” he chuckled, “Goodnight.”

You pursed your lips.

“Goodnight.”

#jason todd x reader #jason todd #red hood #robin #jason todd imagine #dont call me that

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punkrockmads · 4 years

Text

"Wait... Your Birthday is WHEN?!"

Abby x Fem! Reader

Requested by: @bitchinzzz

(Takes place in Avalon after the 2nd game, Abby and Lev do not run into the Rattlers)

You never understood why people fussed so much over birthdays. To you, it was just another day. Another day of surviving the infected. You enjoyed seeing how happy other people were celebrating their birthdays. You especially loved the smile on Abby's face when you gave her an album for her to store her coin collection in earlier that year. And you enjoyed the way Lev hopped around the house with so much joy when you found him a huge stuffed shark a month after that for his birthday. But, you never felt the need to celebrate yours. You just enjoy making others happy. You never mentioned your birthday to Abby before and that wasn't about to change. So when you woke up on the morning of your birthday, you didn't bother saying anything to Abby or Lev.

You crawl out of bed, kissing Abby's forehead and pulling the covers over her shoulders. She mumbles incoherently, brows furrowed, before settling down again. You chuckle to yourself quietly, leaving the bedroom you shared with your girlfriend to get ready for the day. The Fireflies have a pretty comfortable setup on Catalina Island; almost as nice as it was in Jackson.

Your family had left Jackson without you to follow something you thought was simply a rumor. They went looking for the Fireflies. You went after them but soon found out they never made it. You found your mother, father and older sister hanging from trees in the forest... gutted. You lost it and hid in the basement of an abandoned house. You had been there two days when Abby and Lev had found you. You've been with them ever since. You always smile when you think back to how flustered Abby was the first few weeks.

The new Firefly base has power, running water and even a giant gate that keeps the infected out. The three of you were even given your own house in the town. Speaking of power, you need to get breakfast ready. Lev will be up soon. He's been begging your friend, Marcus, to let him patrol the fence line with him and, after weeks of begging, you and Abby finally said he could as long as he stayed beside Marcus.

You walk across the landing to Lev's bedroom door. He always sleeps with it cracked. You don't bother him about it, knowing he feels safer that way. You peek through the crack, making sure Lev is okay. The same thing you do every day. As always, he's sleeping peacefully, clinging to his giant shark plush, a smaller one laying at his feet.

You back away from his door, going downstairs to start breakfast. The living room window is open, letting in a gentle breeze that creates goosebumps on your exposed arms and legs. You only wore one of Abby's shirts and a pair of underwear to bed that night; the Summer weather being too hot to wear anything else, especially with Abby's warm body pressed against yours. You search through the kitchen, deciding scrambled eggs would be the easiest thing to make. You even have some bread you baked a few days ago left.

Although your cooking is excellent, you definitely enjoy baking more. Ingredients for pastries are very hard to come by but, whenever you manage to find them, you absolutely love baking pastries for your family and the children that live in the base. Abby says it's such a "mom" thing and teases you about it but you know she loves it when you make her favorite cookies. Every time she smells the faint scent of lemon coming from the oven, she can't help but smile. You remember her even crying a little when she found out you'd baked a cake for her birthday. She knew it probably took you quite a while to gather those ingredients. So, she finds it slightly odd that she still doesn't know when your birthday is. How is she supposed to plan something special for you?

As you're cooking eggs on the stove, Abby walks into the kitchen wearing a simple white tank top and dark green pyjama shorts. Her hair is pulled into a loose ponytail, falling over her left shoulder. You turn to her, giving her a loving smile as she walks toward you. She stands behind you, pulling you into her arms so you have to reach forward a bit to keep the pan on the stove.

"Morning, love." You say, feeling your back pressed against her warm stomach. Abby leans to press a small, gentle kiss on your right cheek.

"Good morning, angel." She mumbles against your cheek with a sleepy voice, fingers moving under your shirt and dancing along your waist. You laugh lightly at the ticklish sensation. "Did you sleep okay?"

You nod with a small hum, reaching to turn off the stove. "Did you? Sounded like you were mumbling again. Strange dream?" You turn your head to look up at her as she sways the two of you side to side slowly, a habit she's picked up over the many months you've been together.

"Good dream, actually." Abby says, a small smile on her face.

"Oh yeah? What about?" You ask as she lets you go to grab a few plates from one of the wooden cupboards. She sets them down in front of you, clicking her tongue.

"You, Lev and I celebrating Christmas." Abby begins, grabbing forks out of a drawer as you plate the eggs and bread. "Lev seeing a Christmas tree for the first time." Your smile grows wider at the thought of Lev's face lighting up at the sight of a Christmas tree. "I noticed something else, though." She pauses, carrying two plates into the dining room and setting them on the table.

"And what was that?" You ask as you join her, bringing the remaining plate and silverware.

"You had a wedding ring on your finger." The way she speaks slightly quicker doesn't go unnoticed by you. She's trying to be cocky, but she's also shy.

"What are you suggesting?" You fold your arms over your chest, looking at her with a playful grin.

"What, you don't wanna get married in the future?" Abby teases back, raising her eyebrow. You chuckle, letting your arms drop to your sides.

"As long as I'm marrying you." You state as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Damn right, you'll be marrying me." She says, matter of factly. You roll your eyes, looking to the clock on the wall. It's almost 7:30.

"Lev should be up by now. I want him to have time to eat before going with Marcus."

"I can go wake him up." Abby offers.

"That's okay." You peck her lips, turning to go upstairs. "I left something upstairs, anyways." Her eyes are so warm; so inviting. You wish you could gaze into them forever and escape this world of kill or be killed. You think of how different your life would be if the infected never existed as you walk up the stairs. You knock on Lev's doorframe and, hearing no response, you push the door open. Lev is still sleeping exactly how he was earlier.

"Good morning, Lev." You call softly from the doorway. He just lets out a groan and buries his face in his shark. You chuckle, walking over and ruffling his already messy hair.

"Go away." He whines, his voice muffled by the stuffed animal. "Let me sleep forever." You have an idea you're sure will work. You walk to the door again, putting on a fake frown.

"Okay, if that's what you want." You sigh. You see Lev peek up at you, looking at your feigned sad expression. "I guess I'll just have to tell Marcus you changed your mind about patrolling with him. He's gonna be so disappointed but... I'm sure he'll understand." Lev sits up quickly, looking at his clock. His eyes go wide.

"I'm gonna be late!" He yells, scrambling out of bed and running past you. You laugh, hearing him run into Abby and her telling him to slow down before he gets hurt. You walk back into your bedroom, searching through yours and Abby's stuff.

"Dammit, where did I put it?" You mutter to yourself, searching for the small box of children's books you found in a basement you had cleared on your last patrol outside the gates. You're supposed to help out at the daycare today and you're more than excited to show them the new books you found for the younger children. You let out a huff when you find it tucked away in the corner of the closet.

You carry the box downstairs, listening to Lev tell Abby all about his dream about riding a giant dragon and flying to Paris. You set the box down by the front door so you won't forget it before joining your family for breakfast. After eating and doing the dishes, you and Abby go upstairs to get ready for the day.

"What do they have you doing today?" You ask her, pulling a burgundy colored top over your head.

"They want me to help a scouting team clear out a building about a half hour away." She sighs, adjusting her belt. "Nothing big." You hum, glad she isn't doing something too dangerous. Compared to what she used to do at the WLF base, these missions were a lot safer. You asked her if these missions were boring one night while the two of you were cuddled up in bed.

She shook her head, saying that, if anything, they were a lot less stressful. You mostly went on missions with her but, when you found out the daycare workers needed a bit more help, you decided to spend a bit of your time there. Only after Abby assured you she'd be fine with you not tagging along every once in a while. It did help knowing she wasn't going out there alone. They always sent a team of five, sometimes more if necessary.

"You taking those books to the kids today?" Abby asks, watching you lace up your boots. You nod, grabbing her arm to pull yourself up. "I'm sure they'll love them." She smiles. "And Macey will be really excited to see you again." You chuckle a bit at her comment about the little four year old that has grown to adore you. She lost her mother at a very young age so you became a surrogate of sorts.

"It has been a while, hasn't it?" You smile, cupping Abby's face in your hands. She leans down, touching her forehead to yours and wrapping her arms around your waist.

"She's probably losing her mind." Abby laughs, her toned stomach pressed against you. "Her dad might not be around much longer. I'm worried about her." She says, tone going serious. Her father is sick; in and out of the infirmary constantly.

"Anything happens, we'll take her in." You say, repeating the agreement you and Abby had made with Macey's father. The two of you agreed to raise the girl as your own if anything were to happen to him. He knows how much Macey loves you and your family. Abby nods, kissing your lips. You stay there for a moment, letting her soft lips rest on yours until you have to pull away for air. A knock on the front door makes you both walk downstairs. You open the door, letting Marcus in.

"Hello there, ladies." He says in his thick southern accent, stepping in and brushing locks of black hair out of his eyes. Abby calls for Lev and you hear him rush around in his room, trying to get ready quickly.

"You need a haircut." You chuckle, tugging at his hair lightly.

"Ow! Hey!" He laughs, pulling your hand out of his tangled mop he calls hair. You let go, shoving him. He shoves you back and you land against Abby's chest with an 'oof'. You look up at her and she chuckles. The three of you are good friends; always teasing each other. "You guys almost ready?" Marcus asks and you nod as he sits down on the couch. Abby picks up her backpack, putting it on her back. You checked earlier to make sure she has everything she needs for her mission. And then, just in case, you double checked.

"Lev, we've gotta go soon!" Abby calls up the stairs. Lev comes down the stairs moments later, shoes still untied as he reaches for his backpack. "Slow down and tie your shoes, goober." Abby grins at his eagerness. Lev sighs, doing what he's told.

"Please make sure you stay by Marcus, okay?" You say to Lev, slightly worried. Yeah, they'll be right outside the gate, but what if something went wrong?

"I will. Promise." Lev smiles, standing up. "Can we go now?" Marcus looks to you and Abby to make sure everyone was ready to head out.

"Yeah, c'mon." Abby says, leading everyone out the front door. You grab the box of books before closing the door behind you, walking beside Abby and Lev. As you're walking to the daycare, Abby takes the box from you, making you look up at her with a questioning gaze. She just gives you a mischievous smile. "Hey, Marcus. Hold this. She quickly hands the box to the man and grabs you, slinging you over her shoulder and making you yelp in surprise.

"What the hell? Abby! Put me down!" You protest, punching at her back. She only laughs along with Marcus and Lev. You notice a few amused looks from some of the other people who are out and about doing their daily tasks. You feel your face heat up. "Abby, stop! You're embarrassing me!" You groan. You feel her pinch the back of your thigh playfully and you smack her shoulder blade. "Abigail!" Your protests turn into annoyed whines but she doesn't set you down until you reach the daycare. Marcus hands you the box before ushering Lev along, leaving you and Abby to go patrol. "Hope you enjoyed the show, jerks!" You yell after them. Abby just grabs your chin, moving your gaze to meet hers.

"You're cute." She says, pecking the tip of your nose.

"Be safe, okay?" You whisper, wrapping your arms around her neck. You wish she didn't have to go. You'd prefer it if she stayed with you and helped with the children. But, that isn't an option today. She has responsibilities.

"Always." Abby promises. "I love you."

"I love you, too." You smile. She kisses your lips once more before turning and walking away. You watch until she is out of sight and head inside the daycare. Immediately, the young kids look to you and smile.

"Y/N!" They all yell, getting up to swarm you. Several pairs of arms wrap around your waist, making you chuckle. You notice a little banner hanging up by the chalkboard in the front of the room. 'Happy Birthday'.

"Alright, kids. Settle down." Violet laughs. Violet has been running the daycare for quite a while along with a much older woman who moved on to help teach the older kids. When you found out Violet had been stuck with twelve kids, all six and under, you just had to step in and help whenever you could.

"Who's birthday is it?" You ask once all of the kids have returned to their desks.

"It's mine!" A little boy with curly red hair says from the corner. You smile.

"Happy birthday, Adam!" You set the box down on a shelf beside the door. "How old are you?" He grins, revealing a missing tooth. He holds up four fingers. "That's super cool! My birthday's today, too. But I'm much older than you." You say, laughing at his shocked gasp.

"Today's YOUR birthday, too?!" You turn around to see your favorite little girl bounding toward you, her long blonde hair bouncing with every step. She clings to your leg.

"Yep." You say, simply. Macey tugs on your arm, silently asking you to bend down. You do as she wishes, looking into her deep blue, playful eyes.

"What's in the box?" She whispers, squishing your cheeks with her little hands.

"You really wanna know?" You tease. She nods, her eyes wide and full of wonder. You pull her hands away and stand up, walking over to the box. You place it on the floor for all of the kids to see. They all go crazy, so happy to see brand new books for them to read. You let them look through the books, a smile on your face.

"Thank you for the books." Violet says, standing beside you. "They're really going to love them."

"It's really no problem." You smile. "I'm glad they'll be of use instead of collecting dust in that basement."

"So, are you, Abby and Lev gonna do something big for your birthday later?" She asks.

"No." You state, simply. "They don't even know it's my birthday." Violet looks at you like you just drank bleach.

"What?!" She exclaims, her voice barely heard over the babbling kids. "Why haven't you told them?"

"I never really celebrate it. I don't feel the need to." You shrug. She turns away.

"I guess some people don't celebrate their birthdays." Violet says. "Hell, my brother doesn't even remember when his is."

"Hard to keep track of." You say before Macey runs up to you and grabs your legs, repeating little cheers of 'thank you' over and over.

Later that day, you head home to find Lev and Abby already there. You join Abby in the kitchen, helping her prepare dinner as she talks about her mission. When she asks how your day with the kids went, you mention Adam's birthday and it makes her pause. She realizes she still has no clue when your birthday is.

"Hey, when is your birthday?" Abby asks, setting the table.

"Today." You say as if she's just asked what time it is. She almost drops a plate at your response.

"Wait... your birthday is WHEN?!" You laugh at her shocked expression.

"Today." You repeat.

"What- why didn't you tell me sooner?" Abby stumbles over her words, walking back into the kitchen.

"I don't know." You respond, turning to face her. "It doesn't really matter."

"Of course it does!" She takes your hands in hers, running her thumbs over your knuckles. "It's your birthday, baby! If anything, you should at least be celebrating the fact that you survived another year of the apocalypse like a badass." You roll your eyes at her little smirk. "Tell you what, we don't have to do anything exciting tonight. But, I still wanna do something special so... how about the three of us stay up late and watch a movie? Then, we sleep in tomorrow?" You contemplate the idea. Neither of you had work to do tomorrow and it would be nice to spend a night cuddled up on the couch with your family. Maybe you could make it a bit more interesting...

"Can we watch a scary movie?" You ask. "Nothing too inappropriate for Lev, though." She sighs. She's never been the biggest fan of scary movies. They're usually too predictable. The psychological horror films are her favorite because they mess with your mind.

"Alright." Abby agrees. "We can watch a scary movie."

"Okay." You smile, kissing her cheek and going into the dining room. You call for Lev to come eat dinner and he says he'll join as soon as he's finished his drawing. Abby walks in after you, pulling you close. Your eyes go wide when she pulls you into a kiss. Once you process what's happening, you let your eyes close and kiss back. She runs the tip of her tongue along your bottom lip, asking for entrance. You deny, pulling away and grinning at her annoyed groan. As much as you'd love to continue, Lev would be coming into the dining room any minute. Besides, it's way too much fun teasing her and watching her try so hard to continue only to be forced to wait patiently. She settles for kissing your temple, lingering for a brief moment.

"Happy birthday, beautiful." Abby whispers, nuzzling her face into your hair.

"Thanks, babe." You say, resting your forehead on her shoulder. She makes a mental note to never forget your birthday and even starts planning an extravagant celebration for next year that she would most likely have to force you to attend.

#tlou2 #abby anderson #abby anderson x reader #lev tlou #fanfiction

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iguesswhatever · 4 years

Text

Surprise

A/N: Credit to @vintagedolan for the idea. I hope I did ok. Also, this is my first fic so please don't roast me. I also haven’t posted anything on this damn website in years so I forget how to add gifs and stuff. The gifs lynds posted were of Ethan Dolan running in and then doing the peace sign so just pretend they’re here or go look at her page which you should be doing anyways. Oh, and I know there’s supposed to be a word count, summary, etc. but ya girl ain’t at that level yet. Ok, enough stalling.

*****

Dating Ethan was anything but boring in the best and worst ways. He was always trying to surprise you with cute dates or gifts of any size- little getaways, big trips, a note in the lunch he packed you, putting gas in your car, or picking up ice cream when you had a bad day. He was also always getting hurt or breaking something. You weren't exactly Miss Grace- you had your share of broken dishes, bruised elbows, and scuffed shoes from all the trips you've had but Ethan always managed to outdo you in all aspects.

Ethan had invited you over to hang out and you were just wrapping up work when he texted you.

bby e: let me know when you're outside

You immediately knew he was up to something. You shook your head and smirked.

You: Oh no. What are you up to?

bby e: nothing

You: You do know I can always tell when you're lying, right?

You: But it's fine. Have your fun. Leaving soon

bby e: drive safe ❤

You finished packing up your stuff and signed out for the day. As you got in your car you couldn't help but feel the excitement in your tummy. No matter how small his planned surprises were they always made you feel special.

*****

As you parked and shot Ethan a quick text, you ran into Grayson walking to the Porsche.

You put on your sweetest smile and asked innocently, "Where you off to, Gray?"

"Nope," he said seriously. After you had badgered him into revealing one of Ethan's bigger surprises- tickets to Hawaii -the boys had an argument which ended up with you trying to pull them apart after they started wrestling.

"Pussy."

He flipped you off as he got into his car and started it up. You stuck your tongue out and he revved the engine in return. You blew him a kiss and he just shook his head as he backed out, trying to hide his smile.

You walked in and set your keys down, kicking off your shoes in the process. Unhooking your bra you caught a glimpse of the living room and noticed a bunch of cushions missing from the couch. You paused in the middle of shoving your bra in your bag but but a crash sounded from Ethan's room before you could process.

"E...? You good?" You called out not wanting to ruin anything he was trying to do. You couldn't handle the pouting after a blown surprise.

He slid into the kitchen, eyes wide and out of breath.

"Heeey," he had the nerve to throw you peace signs like it was the most natural thing to do.

You raised your eyebrows and tilted your head, "Real slick. Whatcha up to? I noticed some cushions are missing."

"Just setting up. Give me like 5 minutes. Wash your hands or something."

"...for 5 minutes."

He just smiled and ran back out. "I'll let you know when I'm ready!"

You went to the bathroom, where you did wash your hands, then sat at the island and screwed around on your phone.

You looked up at the sound of his steps a few minutes later. Ethan rounded the corner with his hands behind his back. As you craned your neck to try and peek, he presented you with the comfy clothes you left there for the nights when you came right after work.

"All that noise for these?"

Ethan walked over to you and gave you a soft kiss, "This isn't the surprise, babe. You know better. I just want you to be comfy."

You wrapped your arms around him, taking a deep breath of that Ethan scent that was all his own. Your cheek rested on his chest and his heartbeat sounded in your ear bringing you more comfort than one of his oversized shirts and a pair of shorts could ever do. Not that you'd turn those down.

Ethan placed a kiss on the top of your head. You could hear him inhale, almost mimicking what you did moments ago. You hoped it brought him the same comfort and feeling of home.

"Change into these and then meet me in my room." He pulled back and looked at you. His eyes were radiating light and the mischievous energy was so overwhelming you had to laugh.

"Aye aye, captain."

He gave your butt a light smack as he released you from his hold and ran off like a child going for presents on Christmas morning.

Trying to make final guesses as to what he could be up to, you changed right in the kitchen since no one else was home.

"Coming!" You yelled down the hall. He was standing right in the doorway waiting.

"Close your eyes."

You rolled them before clamping them shut. Even in doing that, Ethan walked around behind you and placed his hands over your eyes.

"I wasn't going to cheat," you huffed.

His breath hit your ear as you felt his mouth murmur against it, "I know but it's more fun this way." You pressed into him and moved your hips, your hands reaching back to touch him.

"Definitely more fun." You hummed as your hands roamed down his lower back and rested on his butt. You returned the light smack he had given you earlier with one of your own.

Ethan pulled you closer. He kissed your shoulder and made his way up your neck. You couldn't help but moan when he took your earlobe in his mouth. He pushed you forward with his hips and you felt a glimmer of pride at the fact he was already getting hard.

Before you could say anything, Ethan removed his hands with a "ta da!" and shifted to the side.

What you saw as you opened your eyes almost melted you into a puddle of pure fluff.

He had made you a fort.

The cushions from the couch extended from his bed with blankets helping cover the roof. You walked forward, one hand covering your mouth as the other moved the "door" to the side. You could see his laptop with Netflix open, some snacks for the both of you, pillows, and more blankets.

You couldn't help but feel dumb as you pulled back with tears in your eyes. You had showed him a fort from your IG explore page and had said you guys should do it, but you didn't expect him to take it to heart.

Ethan walked over, concern etched on his face when he saw your tears.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?"

His hands came up to either side of your face as his thumbs stroked your cheeks. You placed a kiss on the inside of both wrists.

"Nothing at all. Just so unbelievably and totally in love with you."

His eyes exploded with stars. Ethan leaned forward, his nose rubbing yours. You closed your eyes as you felt those plush lips against yours and heard him say, "Ditto, my love."

You both made your way through the doors and as you snuggled into his side wanting nothing more than to revel in this feeling...the fort collapsed.

Yells turned into uncontrollable laughter once you locked eyes. Another successful Ethan surprise.

*****

tags: @angelgrayson because she also told an anon that might have been me to send her anything I wrote

#i wasn't gonna do tags but here we are #i forgot how much i hated side blogs #ethan dolan #ethan dolan imagine

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crowdedimagines · 5 years

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Lights Up - Harry Styles

i literally have been listening to this song on repeat since it came out and i highly recommend. hope you guys enjoy xx an: italics are flashbacks

It’s been months in the process, but the day is finally here. Today is the day that Harry releases new music. We’ve been waiting for this for what feels like all year. He has been perfecting everything, making sure that this album can measure up to his first one.

“Hey.” I grin, walking downstairs and walking in to the living room. Harry is sat on our couch, his leg anxiously bouncing up and down. He has his phone in his right hand while he bites at the skin on his finger on his left. We’re home tonight. Harry decided he wanted a night in for when the single is released. A listening party can come later with the whole album.

“Hmm?” Harry looks up, completely having missed my greeting.

“How’s it going?” I reach out and run a hand back through his curls. It’s something I’ve picked up on since we started dating that he really enjoys. It manages to relax him and pull him from his own thoughts.

“M’nervous.”

“Yeah, isn’t that the way it goes every time you release new music?” I sit down next to him on the couch. He leans back and pulls me closer against him. He sets down his phone, there’s a good twenty minutes before the song drops.

“I guess. It’s just always so different when it’s just you. It’s not me and the boys, still not used to it.”

“Well, I know that the fans are going to absolutely love this. Harry, it’s a brilliant song.”

“You haven’t even heard it yet.” He smirks.

He’s right. I haven’t listened to it yet, not that Harry hasn’t offered. I was a fan before I met him, I did the late nights of waiting up. There’s a sense of nostalgia of being surprised with everyone else. It’s been difficult, but I’ve managed to refrain.

“Not yet.” I grin back. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t know you. I know this song is going to be a smash hit.”

Not that I haven’t heard him mumble words here and there. Harry is always singing the tune of something, whether it be Fleetwood Mac, One Direction, or something he hasn’t even recorded yet. He always has a song going in his head.

“I just don’t want to let the fans down. They’ve already picked up on so much. Some are expecting an album already.”

“Well, that’s coming soon anyway.” I stop running my hand and turn his cheek lightly for him to face me, “In all honesty the fans will just be glad you’re posting publicly.”

He rolls his eyes and chuckles. He is very aware of how the fans want him to post more often. A lot of people think he’s inept of using social media, but it’s quite the opposite. He just chooses to share only certain things with them, he has a private story for close friends. A lot of Harry’s fans come to my account now for content, just to make sure he’s still alive and well. I do feature him, with permission. I think he secretly likes that I post about us, even though he feels like it’s something he can’t do on his account. He’s afraid because of the messages I might receive, but at this point I’m past all of the hate.

Harry reaches out and grabs his phone so he can tweet out another picture and post to instgram. Every couple of minutes he makes a new update, which drives the fans even more mad.

“They’re going absolutely mad.” He laughs reading over the comments.

“I’m sure, I know the feeling.” I laugh as I get up from the couch. I walk into the kitchen to grab a late night snack.

“That’s true. How do I always forget that my lovely girlfriend was a fangirl?” He traps me proudly between him and the kitchen island. His arms graze against my hips.

It’s true. I was a fan before I met him. I listened to all of the music, bought the vinyl, went to a concert, and even bought a tee shirt. That shirt is probably the reason I even got to talk to Harry when we first met.

I skim through the records, hunting for anything new. I come here fairly regularly, it’s the only place in L.A that I’ve found that carries a wide variety of vinyl. Since moving here, it’s become one of the places I like to escape to. Thankfully, it’s still fairly undiscovered so it isn’t completely flooded with tourists.

“Erik, is there anything else new?” I shout over to the man standing behind the register.

“You mean since you came in last week? No, you’re looking at the only new shelf.”

“Well that’s no fun.” I mumble, I continue to look anyway.

“I’ve got quite a large collection at my home if you’re looking for something specific.”

I don’t bother to turn and look at the stranger who just gave me a very suggestive yet somewhat nice comment. There were two strangers in here earlier, I never noticed anyone new come in.

“No thanks, I’m just looking anyway.” I continue to flip through record after record.

“That’s what makes it fun.”

I finally turn to see the man I’ve started a conversation with. My breath almost catches in my throat. I knew that voices sounded familiar. It caught me off guard to hear it in person. Harry Styles.

“Yeah, I’m sure.” I turn back to the records, trying to seem as unaffected even though I’m pretty sure both of us can hear my heart pounding in my chest.

“What? Now do you want to take me up on that offer?” I don’t have to look to know he has a smirk on his face.

“I don’t even know you.” I roll my eyes, hoping he can’t see the smile even though I’m sure he can.

“Your shirt begs to differ.”

I wish I could say it’s a fluke that I am wearing a band tee from his tour, but that would be a lie. It’s soft and I bought it oversized which just makes it comfy.

“I may know your music, but I don’t know you.” I counter, fulling turning to face him with a full blown smirk to match his.

“Well, let's change that.”

It’s been over a year since we first met. Everything has changed since then, in the best way possible. I can now say that I know Harry inside and out. He loves that I was a fan before we met, even if he likes to bring it up to tease every now and then.

“Don’t you have to like go be a famous rockstar or something?” I tease back, pushing my hips forward to meet his.

“I’m sure the fans wouldn’t notice a few minutes-” He starts to place kisses all down my neck.

“I assure you, they will.” I push back on his chest and manage to escape from his grasp. I grab a bowl of grapes from the fridge and rejoin him in the living room.

“What’s the countdown?”

“Three minutes.”

“This is so exciting!” I cheer.

Harry pulls up the premiere on our TV. The screen is flooded with the live chat going on with the fans.

“Lights Up.” I grin, reading the text across the screen.

“I really hope you like it.” He leans over to press a kiss to my temple, and steal a grape.

“I’m sure I will, bub.” I give him an actual kiss now.

Soon enough, it’s showtime. I countdown shows up on the screen, as soon as it hits one my lungs drain of all oxygen as I wait for the downbeat. Harry reaches out his hand to place on my thigh, the whole time I can’t decide whether to focus on the lyrics, notes, or the video.

“Play it again.”

“What?” Harry laughs.

“I haven’t fully absorbed it yet.”

Harry starts it again, this time I can fully grasp everything and it’s beautiful. The way he puts his feelings into such a beautiful song amazes me. I can feel a single tear glide down my cheek, The smile growing wider on my face as the song fades to silence.

“Love-” He reaches out to wipe away the wet trail on my face.

“I know, I’m lame. Whatever-”

“No, I just wasn’t expecting that reaction. Made my heart skip a beat.”

“Harry, that song.” I shake my head, “It was something else.”

“I hope you mean in a good way.” He looks at me out of the corner of his eye. I can tell he’s trying to joke, but the tone of his voice tells me he;s actually nervous for my reaction.

“Harry, in the best way. I will never be able to get over how you are able to convey how you feel into a song that is beautiful and somehow still relatable. I loved it.”

Harry tackles me down into the couch, his tight around the back of my neck pulling me into a hug.

“Don’t scare me like that, love.” Harry groans into my hair.

“Did you think I was sad crying?” I laugh.

“I don’t know!”

“Awe poor me, my amazing rockstar boyfriend just released a crappy single!” I mimic.

“Hey, teasing isn’t very nice.” His grips changes to focus on digging into my hip.

“Alright, alright.” I grin giving in, “It’s lovely, Harry. Well done.”

“Thank you.” He smirks, he sits up and pinches my bum, causing me to yelp. He reaches for his phone again, I’m sure to tweet more of the publicity images. He doesn’t stop straddling me as he scrolls through his phone.

“Give me a big thumbs up.” Harry turns his phone towards me.

“What? No!” I cover up my face. Between the pajamas and lack of makeup I would prefer to stay off camera.

“Just going to me mum.” Harry explains, “Want to tell her it’s a hit at home.”

I peek out and smile widely, holding a big thumbs up.

“Perfect.”

I manage to wiggle my way out from under him so I can grab my bowl of grabs again from the table. I reach out for one when I notice a twitter and instagram notification.

Harry Styles has tagged you in a photo.

“Harry Edward Styles.”

FEEDBACK PLZ

#harry styles imagine #harry styles x reader #harry styles imagines #harry styles instagram #harry styles love #harry styles lights up #Harry Styles #lights up

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alpaca-writes · 3 years

Text

Mystics, Chapter 10

When Arch becomes hired on at Mystics by Lyrem, everything seems to be going well- their life nearly becomes perfection. Soon enough, however, Arch realizes that perhaps not everything is as perfect as it seems….

Directory: [chapter one] [chapter two] [chapter three] [chapter four] [chapter five] [chapter six] [chapter seven] [chapter eight] [chapter nine]

Tag list: @myst-in-the-mirror

CW: misgendering of a nb character, creepy/intimate whump, psychological whump, shipwreck mention.

CHAPTER TEN: GEMINI PT II

Charlotte would not hesitate to speak up when she found herself uncomfortable. Usually.

Shortly after Arch had left for their meeting, Charlotte tidied around. She was left to clean up the discarded rompers around the living room and as she repacked on of the many clothing store bags she had brought home, there was a knock at the front door. She opened it, expecting a politician to be making their rounds or a band group from the high school to be asking for donations. Instead, she found Lyrem, smiling back at her with his unique charm. He was a bit red in the face, possibly from spending too much time in the sun.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, already finding herself with a sickening feeling in her stomach from being near this unholy man.

“Looking for Arch, of course,” he replied, “Are they around?”

Charlotte paused, looking for any sign that the man might be joking with her.

“No, Lyrem. They left a half hour ago to meet with you at Mystics,” She said unamused. “… Like you had asked them to.”

Lyrem lifted a hand to his mouth, realizing something.

“Oh dear. Oh dear…”

“What?” Charlotte asked, becoming impatient.

“Well, I had sent two messages,” Lyrem pulled out his phone, scrolling through their conversations. “One to say that there was a store meeting, and a second telling Arch that I would come by for a chat instead of-

Oh… It seems that I had forgotten to send it.”

Charlotte huffed, rolling her eyes at the old man. “Go find her then!”

“Them.”

“Oh, for goodness’ sakes, them.” She corrected. “You know I’m getting a little tired of you demanding so much out of them. Who runs a store downtown past nine o’clock on a Sunday evening, anyway?”

“Someone who is desperate to stay out of a church I suppose.” Lyrem looked up from his phone. “There, I sent them a message to come back.”

“What? Why? Go out and meet them. They’re probably downtown already!” Speaking sense to this old man was becoming more than a chore.

“I would but to walk that far is not something I can manage anymore. Old bones, you know,” He smiled kindly at Charlotte. “Would you mind if I came in for a sit down?”

Sit in your car, she thought.

He was an old-fashioned sort, obviously craving human connection in the oddest of ways. What Arch saw in him as any sort of mentor, she would never understand. Reluctantly, she nodded, leading him through Arch’s sprawling makeshift bedroom and into the small kitchen where sunlight was still peeking through the trees by the window.

“Would you like something to drink?”

“A glass of water would be lovely.”

Charlotte couldn’t help but smile patronizingly as she handed his glass to him. Tap water. He set it down on the table in front of him.

“Would you like to hear a story while we wait for Arch to arrive?”

Charlotte leaned against the refrigerator with arms folded. She cocked her head at him. She really didn’t care what he had to say or what stories he wanted to tell.

“Sure,” she smiled.

“Ah, wonderful. I love telling this one.

The year was nineteen seventy-two. I had been travelling Europe for several weeks, however, for what particular reason I ventured out there for, I can no longer recall.” He cleared his throat, sipping the water from the glass on the table, taking his time. “I came upon a lovely town on the Grecian coastline. I had found a little place to stay there and enjoyed my time immensely with the local people. I stayed with a family who offered me a small room of their house for only a few pennies a night, and word eventually got around that I was looking for work in the area, seeing as I was too content living there to leave anytime soon.

It was one cloudy morning when a man woke me from a slumber; said that he had a job for me and would pay me quite well if I dared accomplish the task for him. He was in the delivery trade, you see; he would connect like-minded collectors and clients and deliver the items as a third-party investor that would keep both sides happy.”

Charlotte had already lost all interest in the story, resorting to rub the bridge of her nose as she closed her eyes.

“The package he had for me to deliver was none other than a statue of Perseus to be signed to a buyer on a remote island several knots out from shore. It was odd to me that he would not do the deed himself since it seemed simple enough, but alas I was not willing to miss my chance to collect on a decent paycheque.

Out on the water, I followed his map. I took the necessary precautions, found my bearings, and yet being out there for an entire day I still could not find the island that this man had spoken of. It was marked clearly on his papers for me, and so I sailed throughout the sea until dusk, searching for it. In the evening of that fateful night, unwilling to turn back as I was quite stubborn; I had encountered a freak cyclone on the water. A fearsome storm that roiled in the abyss of the deepest parts of the sea. The wind and the rain blew so hard into the boat that it felt like I was being shot with thousands of miniscule ice pellets. I couldn’t see a damned thing out there. Water tornadoes threatened to capsize the boat more than once and left me to drown in the torrential depths of the Mediterranean.

Then, I awoke, washed ashore the next morning. The man who had hired me to take the statue out stood over me as I opened my eyes on the rocks. I didn’t feel as though it was something I should have survived, and yet I did. Content with the job I had done for him he presented me with a large envelope containing over six hundred Drachma, and then he simply went on his way. At the time, it was a tremendous amount of money to me. If I could go back now, I think I would have demanded more for the risk it took to my life.”

Charlotte rolled her eyes, thankful that the story had come to its end. But then she couldn’t help but wonder aloud.

“What happened to the statue?”

He lifted his gaze to her. “Hm. What about the statue, dear?” He asked.

“Did it break? Did you lose it, and the boat in the storm?”

He shook his head. “Oh no, no. The statue was delivered.”

“You said you washed ashore after the storm”-

“I had done what he had asked of me,” Lyrem explained, drinking more of the water down. “I came to accept that the statue was more valuable in the bottom of the sea, than on the surface of Earth. That must have been what the man also thought. That is what I believe of many things these days as well. Some things, some people, just belong under the ground.”

Charlotte side-eyed him.

“Right,” she said, checking the time on the oven. It had only been fifteen minutes.

Lyrem checked his pocket watch. It was hidden away beneath his jacket, and he clicked it open checking it briefly before folding it away again. He made a humming sound. If Charlotte was familiar with the Spanish Guitar, she might have recognized the tune as Sevilla- Suite Espanola No. 3 as played by his favoured guitarist, Andrs Segov-

“Where are the hell are they?” Charlotte walked across the small house, and peered out the front door, worriedly. “I don’t see her-them coming up the walk. They should be back by now.”

“I’m sure they are being well taken care of,” Lyrem appeared behind her, causing her to jump in place and flip around.

“But, I, myself, seem to also be running out of time.” Lyrem continued hauntingly, looking past the woman, over her shoulder.

“Did you have something you needed to get back to?” Charlotte inquired. “I’m sure Arch can reschedule a meeting with you.”

“Fortunately,” he sniffed, addressing her once again. “that won’t be necessary. I am exactly where I need to be at this moment.”

With lowering brows, Charlotte backed up, keeping her hand on the doorknob.

“What is wrong, Charlotte?” Lyrem tilted his head, in feigned concern.

She couldn’t stop staring at him, frozen in place- wondering if she was being silly, acting crazy, or just reading all correct the signs that told her to run.

She shook her head, heart pounding. He was merely standing there. Maybe a bit close for comfort, but he wasn’t threatening her. Not outright.

“I- I don’t know…” She answered hesitantly. “But… I don’t think I want you anywhere near me… or my child.”

“Arch will always be safe with me. Of that, I can assure you. As for you, though,” Lyrem admitted, caringly. “You won’t have to worry about me being anywhere near you, at all, ever again.”

Charlotte was backed against the door now, turning the knob to the front door, intent on running out.

“I mean it, Charlotte. You are far too disrespectful to be in my company. And I feel bad for Arch. How they put up with you for so long... well, that requires a modicum of patience that I have never once possessed. Never fear, my dear Charlotte. I am doing this for their sake. It really is better this way.” he explained. “That is why I plan to…”

“’Plan to’ what?” Charlotte asked, fear rising in the tremors of her voice.

“Well, I suppose you’ll see when you open the door,” he rushed his words, ushering her to leave as she wished to do.

Charlotte bolted around. The front door opened to a pool of darkness. There was no light, no sound, no nothing. She had yet to step forward. She didn’t say a word and only stared into the beckoning void

“Just remember to breathe,” she was advised in a whisper from behind.

Then, Lyrem pressed a firm hand against her back. Into the darkness Charlotte was shoved forward, until she was utterly gone- swallowed up into the shadows where the light would never reach her.

Lyrem closed the front door. The light from outside returned as he opened it again- the Labyrinth now missing. Cars drove on past, children rode their bikes, chickadees and jays cheeped in the bushes, and the breezes signaled early summer as the aspens trembled along the boulevard. It was the sound of life.

Still, there was no Arch to be found. Not down the street.

Not yet.

A soft purr sounded by Lyrem’s feet, then he felt the warmth of a cat curling around his ankles. He looked down, and picked Maleficent up to hold her close until she was just beneath his chin. Her long gray fur tickled the side of his face.

“Do you want to be a part of my family too?” He asked, looking down at her sweetly. Maleficent purred on, as Lyrem’s index finger stroked the side of her cheek firmly. “I’m sure we can make room for you.”

#whump #mystics #Mystics by Alpaca #Lyrem #Arch #Alpaca OCs #writing blog #whump writing #creative writing #writing #whumpblr #writeblr #poor charlotte #just when everything seemed to be happy again #she gets tossed to the Labyrinth

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yourlocalauthor · 4 years

Text

Anger Issues- Chapter 1

Pairing: JJ x Reader

Summary: I actually have no idea how to summarize this so if someone could help me that’d be very much appreciated lol

Word Count: 1.6k+

Warnings: Mentions of alcohol, drugs, child abuse (highkey wish we had this warning in tv shows), and prolly gonna mention sex at some point, idk that should be it

A/N: Bruh, i had no idea so many people would be interested in this. This was going to go a very different way but I finished OBX again and decided to change it up. Also italics are flashback, enjoy!

Requests are open

You weren’t an angry person, that’s what you kept telling yourself. But ever since your parents died and you moved to the island with your aunt that’s all you could feel. You were so angry and you weren’t sure why, or at what. You were just angry, angry at the whole situation. Your aunt told you had every right to be, which only pissed you off more. You were looking for a reaction, something to make you feel in control. But when your aunt kept dismissing it, and telling your teachers, counselor, and principals to dismiss it, you couldn’t take it. So what did you do? Trashed your least favorite teacher's classroom. It felt slightly justified when you saw him being a creep during gym. When you were taken to the principal's office, she tried calming down which only enraged you more. You cussed her out and then next thing you knew you had after school detention for two weeks. You felt like you deserved more, but you’d take what you can get. So there you sat Friday afternoon in detention. It was quiet, the small hot room filled with two other people in it. You knew the other two boys, JJ Maybank and John B Routledge. John B was in your history class, and English, and JJ was in your Art, Gym, and Health. JJ also happened to live two houses down from yours. That was about as much as you cared to know. You had heard some of the rumors, specifically about JJ and his dad but you didn’t care. Rumors weren’t something you wanted to partake in, even if your aunt was someone who seemed to love drama. You let out a soft exhale shifting uncomfortably in your seat. One thing about the island that you learned was it was uncomfortably hot. As someone who grew up in the mountains of Colorado, you weren’t exactly used to the sudden new change in weather. Growing up living on the beach like your aunt seemed like a dream, unfortunately eight year old you didn’t factor in the heat. You pulled out your tank top, trying to get it to stop sticking to your skin. You looked over to the teacher who was supposedly meant to be watching the three of you. Of course his lazy ass fell asleep, feet up on the desk. The two boys had also taken note of it, quietly conversing. You tried to make yourself busy, as you listened in but it was no use. It was too hot for you to concentrate. You laid back in your seat, staring at the ceiling trying to get your mind off of the heat.

“Hey you New Girl.”

You lifted your head staring at the pair.

“Yes?”

“We’re about to dip figured it was only fair if we told you.”

“What about Mr. Nixon?”

“By the time he’s up it’ll be late.”

“You coming or not?”

You carefully eyed the blonde who had now just spoken up, he was already out of his seat, John B following.

“Look if you don’t come now, you’ll be stuck here until five pm.”

You looked back at the old man sleeping at the desk, and then at the two boys.

“Fuck it”

You simply said, before piling your things into your bag and standing up. You tugged at your ridden up shorts trying to stop any camel toe from peeking through. The two boys stood there staring at you, until you looked back up.

“What?”

“Nothing New Girl.”

And just like that the two were out of the classroom, you following in pursuit. It was so close to Summer that it didn’t even matter, if you skipped detention. The three of you ran out of the school, John B laughing at whatever joke JJ cracked. All of you continue to run, until you were a good distance from the town.

“Shit New Girl, we didn’t expect you to be so eager to leave the school.”

“You guys do realize I have a name right? And also I was in detention with all of you, not sure why you’d think I wouldn’t want to bounce.”

“I told you she was in there for a reason JJ. Anyway I’m John B, and that’s JJ”

The blonde gave you a goodly looking smile, and you couldn’t help but give one back.

“Y/N”

“Well Y/N, we’re having a kegger at the Boneyard care to help us set up?”

You looked at the two boys weighing the options in your head, you were hot as shit and probably needed to go home otherwise your aunt would probably flip or force you to do some meditation. On the flip side you’d be alone for a couple more hours.

“Sure.”

And just like that they smiled at you, JJ grabbing your hand pulling you along as all three of you began to head to the beach.

That was freshman year. Probably the best summer of your life, it was the summer you learned how to shotgun a can of beer courtesy of one JJ Maybank, you spent your days at the beach your new found group of friends teaching you how to surf which turns out wasn’t as easy as snowboarding, your nights were either filled with parties, or late night conversations on the beach. It was perfect, absolutely perfect. Then one night while the four of you were sitting around a campfire laughing, passing a joint around and that’s when you realized it. You liked JJ. Like you found him very cute, and maybe you wanted to kiss him. But the whole group dynamic worked so well, you didn’t want to ruin it. So from that night on you set your feelings aside not wanting them to ruin the perfect summer. Somewhere towards the end of the summer Kiara joined the group, or joined it again. You didn’t really know the story, all you knew was they were all friends in the eight grade, and then came freshman year she apparently went full Kook at Kook Academy. But you didn’t care, she was fun and it was nice to have a girl around. The two of you hit it off almost immediately, and those last couple of weeks of summer were even more fun than before. And then came the end of the year party. You remembered helping set up the kegs, and bringing the hundreds of packages of red solo cups. And then at some point you had gotten very drunk, because you didn’t remember much past that. You remembered having your first four cups of beer, and then someone brought out a flask everyone was drinking from and maybe you had a couple sips too many because the last thing you remembered was JJ carrying you out the both of you laughing your asses off. Then you woke up in your bed, with probably the worst hangover you’ve ever had. Later that day when all of you met up, everything was chill except for JJ who was very not chill. He kept staring at you, looking away when you looked back, avoiding talking to you directly. Luckily for you the other two boys hadn’t taken note of it, but Kiara did.

Once everyone left she stayed behind to talk to you, along with helping you do some beach cleaning.

“So what was that all about?”

“What do you mean?”

“You and JJ something seems off between you.”

“Really? Couldn’t tell.”

“Y/N.”

“Look I don’t know.”

“Was it last night.”

“I’m not sure, I blacked out. Last thing I remember was him literally carrying me out, we were so happy and laughing. After that I remember absolutely nothing.”

“Weird… I’m sure it’ll pass, he’s probably in one of his moods.”

“Yeah.”

It didn’t pass. Suddenly you went from being basically best friends with JJ to him barely talking to you. You continued to hang out with everyone, but it kept getting to uncomfortable until eventually you just stopped showing up. You kept talking with everyone, but it just wasn’t the same before. And you were angry, after a summer of managing to not be angry you were very fucking angry. You began acting out again, much to the dismay of your aunt but you didn’t care. You had all those feelings bunched together, and you needed to get them out. You began quite the regular in after school detention, at one point you were also suspended but you made sure that never happened again. You spent less and less time at home, during the day you were at school, or the beach, and then at night you’d chug some cheap energy drink and then go out skating around the beach. It wasn’t a healthy lifestyle, but life was too short to not live on the edge.

Tonight was one of the few nights you were home. Your aunt was on the mainland, for her job. She was a massage therapist or something like that. A couple times a week she had to stay on the mainland for whatever reason. It was a Friday evening, and you were hoping to catch up on some of the sleep you were severely missing. You had set up on the couch, the tv playing some movie you couldn’t care less about. You were more focusing on the small stack of papers in front of you. Despite skipping school and getting in trouble half the time you were smart. A lot of people caught on to that, and before you knew it you had a small business writing essays, doing homework, or whatever assignment people needed done. It helped fuel your caffeine addiction, and you were able to keep yourself alive while your aunt was gone. You had just begun typing up your third essay about the civil rights movement, when you heard a knock on the door...

Tags

@spilledtee @teamnick @sexualparkour @yeehaw87

#jj maybank #jj outer banks #jj imagine #obx jj #jj smut #jj angst #jj fluff #obx #obx fanfiction #obx x reader #outer banks

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dontasktheradiodemon · 3 years

Text

Tower #2 (1/2/2021)

Click here if you’re like “What the heck is this about?”

Direct follow-up to this chat log.

Rhedd @sackreligion ducks in on Alastor @usedhearts and Alastor @dontasktheradiodemon. He’s eaten a chunk of soap. These things happen.

Anyway Dontask Alastor wants heelies now.

Rhedd

Hiccup. A soap bubble flits down from the ceiling, so innocuously. And then another, until a *certain radio demon* can be seen if one only looks up. He's peeking his head out upside down from a black portal.

usedhearts Alastor

The sound doesn't make Alastor jump, or start. He doesn't even look up from his phone for a second or two after. But then, slowly, his eyes lift, trailing up the wall until they lock on Rhedd, dangling out of a portal from the ceiling. Well!

"Can I.....help you?" He asks, raising a brow.

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

Alastor is ALMOST out of hearing range when his alternate speaks. He immediately ducks back in, curious. “Oh!” His eyes light up. ... More. “Well, speak of the devil!”

Rhedd

His hand raises (or lowers?) and though his mouth doesn't move at all, his voice is heard.

<<HELLO! This isn't a HIDEY PLACE, is IT? I thought I'd DROP IN and TUNE IN to my FAVORITE FREQUENCY but I MAY have THE WRONG NUMBER! HAHA!>>

usedhearts Alastor

Oh! Were they playing that game? Alastor's teeth lock in place as well, and when he speaks, its far more tinny and static backed than before.

"_Not to much a hidey place as a tucked away place! Not sure which frequency that is, but there are a lot here! Numbers and dials and buttons, oh my!_"

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

Y’all are being silly, Alastor’s talking with his actual mouth. “It would make for a poor hidey place, a broadcasting station inside a lighthouse! Why, we’re just about the most noticeable point on the island, ha! If we’re not broadcasting on your favorite frequency already, I’m sure we could pirate it!”

Rhedd

He slips back into the portal, only to crawl out of someone else's shadow. Feels like seaweed.

<<WELL! That's POSSIBLE! After all, WHEREVER I AM, they! ARE! >>

He's wearing a horrible hoodie, shutter shades and look at that glittery black lipstick. His ear tag jingles.

He's petting the red radio in his satchel. And as SOON as Rhedd opens his mouth, a sea of foam escapes. He looks like he's in pain,

usedhearts Alastor

Oh that terrible hoodie. Alastor's decidedly NOT looking at it. Instead he looks at the foam coming out of Rhedd's mouth. This time he doesn't stop his mouth from moving as he speaks.

"What in the world happened with you, my good man! You look positively rabid!"

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

He takes one look and asks mildly, “Tide pod?”

Look, it’s not a bad guess. He’s been there. He understands.

Rhedd

"-oap!"

His voice is more akin to a gurgle, and he lifts a finger, opening a portal to shove his head through. There's nothing, no sound, but he's clearly straining....

And then he pulls his head back out, coughing and wiping his mouth as more bubbles pop up.

"Took a BITE! Couldn't RESIST!"

usedhearts Alastor

"Was it one of those ones that look like cupcakes? Or that are just shaped in general? Always tempted to take a bite out of one of those!" Alastor laughed, his foot bopping to unheard music where it sat on the table.

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

Alastor cracks up when Rhedd's head disappears. He manages to wheeze to his still-headed alternate, "Headless horseman." Cue the neighing sound effect.

When all of Rhedd is back in the room, he says, "Nice of you to return to us! I was afraid you were *heading out!*" He laughs again, slinging an arm around Rhedd's shoulders. "But come now, I'm sure the taste is atrocious, but it's not worth losing your head over it! What have you been going around saying that's so awful you need to wash out your mouth so thoroughly? Hah!"

Rhedd

OHHHH! He loves a good joke, ESPECIALLY at his expense.

"OHH! AHAH! HAHAHA! No, NO! It didn't look ANYTHING like FOOD! I just took it and BIT IT without HESITATION! And due to my NATURE when IT! COMES! TO! FOOD!" He taps at his mouth, then drags his claw down his throat, playing a very cartoonish GULPING sound. His own audience laughs, "Ideas POP IN and I am UNABLE to hold myself BACK from them!"

usedhearts Alastor

The jokes have him and his audience laughing as well! Some high chortles! This is the good stuff, being around other hims!

"Ah, yes, I see! The classic impulse to put something in your mouth and the other classic inability to stop! I understand completely. Sometimes you just need to take a bite out of the fake fruit!"

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

"I hope you're getting enough *real* food, though!" He gives Rhedd a critical look, has he been fed? "How full is that tank right now? Aside from the suds."

Rhedd

Rhedd grins at the two Radio Demons looking at him. What fun, having so much attention. He nods his head at the one, and a winning buzzer sound plays, before Rhedd turns to the other Alastor addressing him. He opens his mouth and a burp comes, to which he immediately covers his mouth with both hands, just after bubbles came up. His audience *roars* with laughter, and his ears flick, the tag jingling. *De nada.*

<<I beg your PARDON, friends! I've got NOTHING in my stomach, but it SURE! IS! CLEAN!>>

usedhearts Alastor

That's enough to get Alastor up out of his seat. His sauntering over with his usual, unhurried but jaunty, step, and then his arm goes around Rhedd. Just ignore the sweatshirt, Alastor. Be strong, be strong for Mother.

"Well that simply won't DO! Can't have another one of us wandering around with only bubbles in his gut, now can we? What sort of duplicates would we be?" The back of his free hand is on his forward and he's in Full Drama mode.

"Oh the humanity! What little we have left, that is!" He looked over at other Alastor and winked. "Think we need to correct this situation, don't you, good chum?"

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

Just two Alastors smothering Rhedd from either side, no big deal, he doesn't mind being trapped in all these arms does he? Alastor winks back. "I think we do! I've got the leftovers from a few culinary experiments left in the kitchen, it should be enough to fill a plate. Knowing your appetite, though, I think we'll need more than that!"

Rhedd

He doesn't mind being trapped in all of these arms at all, he has more than enough layers on to avoid *feeling* it, as it were. Though he felt a little bad for burping--there goes another one. Rhedd winces, though his mouth is still covered.

<<I would be HONORED to come to DINNER! I was in the MIDDLE of a RIVETING GAME of HIDE AND SEEK with my X-0-X-0, but before THAT I was IN THE MOOD for a MEAL!>>

usedhearts Alastor

"That's the good thing about games-- you can always continue with them after eating! The number of times I scarfed down dinner as a child to go running back out to play tag, well, they're incalculable!" He laughed and shared a look with Alastor before starting to steer Rhedd out of the broadcasting tower.

"Let's get that meal and then you can get back to your game!"

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

"Are you hiding or seeking? We'll stand guard at the kitchen door on your behalf if we have to!"

Rhedd

<<SEEKING!>> It's actually so easy to steer him, because he's leaning back on his heelies. Literally just steer him in the direction you need him to go. <<My! Dear! Engi! Is off HIDING!>>

usedhearts Alastor

"Engi? Not sure if I'm familiar with that nickname. Is it another one of us?" Zoom there they go.

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

Alastor's been entirely distracted by the heelies. He's staring at them. "Where did you get *those?*"

Rhedd

Rhedd opens his mouth, and just. Drools out soap. Amazing. He covers his mouth again as his eyes change to radio dials. Everything is fine.

<<Oh, these? Do you LIKE THEM? I picked them UP after a MEAL! Fun little THINGS! I can imagine myself, GLIDING through the SCENE!>>

usedhearts Alastor

"They certainly up your maneuverability! It's so easy to guide you along! _Allons-y!_" He catches sight of that soap drool. That's going to need to be taken care off. And he's summoning a hankie to hand off to Rhedd. There you are old boy.

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

"I want a pair."

Uh. He pets Rhedd's back. Hopefully dinner isn't going to be interrupted by him vomiting everywhere.

Rhedd

Absolutely he'll be fine. He takes the hankie. He's almost out of soap.

<<I can GET YOU ONE! I'm SURE of it! Just have to FIND another DEMON WEARING some!>>

usedhearts Alastor

"Think! You could install them in your dress shoes-- no one would see it coming!" He laughed.

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

"Just make sure they're the same size as me!" Studio laughter. "That's exactly what I was thinking! One second I'm tap dancing, the next I'm literally gliding across the floor! Imagine that!"

Rhedd

<<What an ACT! They take some GETTING USED TO so he CAREFUL you don't BREAK A LEG while you BREAK A LEG! HAHA!>>

usedhearts Alastor

"Yes! Practice makes perfect, after all! Don't want to be falling all over yourself like a baby deer!" He laughed.

dontasktheradiodemon Alastor

And then they went off to get food. Further banter is probably involved. Musical numbers MIGHT be involved.

#extermination party palace #sackreligion #usedhearts #chat log

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raysofcrosby · 4 years

Text

LITTLE DO YOU KNOW PT. 11

"𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦. 𝘐𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘵, 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘣𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵." ━ 𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫

gif credit (x)

series masterlist

requested: yes | no

warnings: a nice heart to heart, some fluff and hoenstly nothing else.

word count: 9,128 [of PURE UNEDITED STORY WOW ITS SO LONG]

authors note: HI hi everybody! part 11 is finally here woooo! this is honestly where i had originally planned on ending the series and i hope you guys enjoy what would have been the original ending! i can’t believe this series is practically over bc i loved writing it so much and reading all of your guys’ theories, messages and tags. it literally warms my heart how much you guys loved it! so without further ado, here’s part 11!

[ DECEMBER 23RD, 2019 ]

By the time you made it to Victoria, you were exhausted. Your flight had been delayed twice and almost canceled due to the weather, but luckily you made it home before you could end up on Jamie and Katie's flight. By the time you had landed, your mom had texted you mid-flight saying that Jordie would be picking you up and gave you no reason as to why. The moment you read her text, you realized it was too late to turn back and go hop on to another plane– so it looked like facing Jordie was your only option. It's not like you knew if he was as angry at you as Jamie was. You were the one ignoring his text messages, not the other way around. When you found him just outside of security, you felt like you were going to be sick, and every step you took towards him was spent preparing yourself for the speech he was probably going to give you.

The one thing that you didn't expect though, was for him to wrap you up in a tight hug without even saying a word. You stood there, stiff in his arms for only a moment before wrapping your arms around him and returning his hug. There was a significant age gap between you and all three siblings, all three of them were out of the house by the time you were 10-years-old. But if there was one sibling you were close to growing up, it was Jordie. Sure, you and Jamie were close too, especially with the two of you being in Dallas most months out the year. And sure, Jenn was always the best big sister to you, giving you advice on things you could never go to your parents to. But Jordie, he was the ultimate sibling. He was always on your side, no matter what choices you made but was also never afraid to call you out on your bullshit– and of course, always helped you find a way to fix it. So his hug, his hug made you feel the most relaxed you had felt since everything well to hell.

That car ride home was when he asked you how everything had been, especially since you've been dodging his calls. And while you didn't want to just throw Jamie or Tyler under the bus, the words and feelings just poured out of you. You filled in the holes and gaps that Jamie hadn't told him from beginning to end. And while he did let you know that he thought you and Tyler could have found a different way to deal with things, you could also see that he was pissed at Jamie for treating you the way that he had. Your family had one rule that all of you abided by:

you always loved and supported each other, no matter what.

When you got home, Kennedy was there to greet you along with your parents and Jordie's fiancé Jessi, and you guys all hung out together until about midnight when you and Kennedy went to bed since you were going to be showing her around Victoria tomorrow morning and afternoon. Of course, the two of you stayed up a little later as she caught you up on how her few days with her parents were and what they had gotten her for Christmas. While you filled her in on what it was like to be Big Rig's roommate, your guys' future spring break plans with Paisley and of course, your big blow up on Tyler in the hallway. You felt proud when you told her how you got everything off of your chest that you needed to and even more proud when you saw the look on her face. The one thing you weren't expecting from her though, is her suggestion that maybe you do hear him out at some point in time when the two of you were back in Dallas again.

And as the two of you fell asleep, you didn't want to admit that you had been thinking the same thing from the moment you left that hallway.

❒❒❒❒

Jamie and Katie had gotten in a few hours after everyone went to bed. As far as you knew, they were greeted by the lone kitchen light your mom always left on if someone was expecting to come home late. They were still sleeping when everyone met downstairs for breakfast and by the time that they had a chance to wake up and come downstairs, you dragged Kennedy out of the house and gave her a tour of your hometown.

You managed to avoid Jamie up until dinner time when you had no choice but to come home. You greeted Katie like you hadn't just seen her yesterday and Jamie was too wrapped up in a conversation with your mom to even warrant a greeting. Dinner was probably as awkward as it could get. Sure, the conversation flowed easily from topic to topic: the hockey season, how life in LA was going, how Jessi's parents were doing, what our predictions were when Jenn and Andrew would welcome a new baby into the world, whether or not Kennedy and I were prepared for the real world after college– it was all so easy.

Except, as expected, there were those small pockets of awkward tension whenever a small silence fell over the table or something having to do with Dallas ever popped up into question. Leave it to your dad of all people to be the one to bring up the Winter Classic and of course, Tyler in a not so obvious way. He had said he'd been talking to Paul that he had asked if both families were going to get together for a dinner after the game. You could see the vein in Jamie's forehead beginning to bulge and you shot your mom and Jordie a desperate look. When she gave you a shoulder shrug back, it was then that you looked at your father and realized he knew damn well what he had done.

No one gave him an answer, so he answered it himself and said that they were already making reservations and the rest of dinner went by uneventfully. Your mom had made her holiday chocolate mousse pie and your group sat around in the living room in front of the tv and watched, like tradition, some Hallmark movies. But as the time got later, everyone started to go off to bed. You agreed to go up but laid there, staring at your ceiling as Kennedy was fast asleep next to you. You tried everything to make yourself fall asleep, but it just wasn't happening.

You sighed and quietly snuck out of bed, putting on your slippers before opening your bedroom door and walking out into the hallway. You walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, turning on the kitchen light and grabbing yourself a clean glass that was in the drying rack. There was a drink that your dad had made you and your siblings whenever you guys were sick. And sure, you weren't sick right now, but the warm drink and the hint of alcohol would be enough to make you feel a little more sleepy than you were at this very moment. You grabbed the makers mark whiskey from beneath the kitchen island and the rest of your ingredients from around the kitchen. You remembered the first time you had to drink it. Both you and Jamie had managed to catch a winter cold and your dad made you share the same cup. Jamie's twisted face of disgust was one that still made you laugh to this day whenever you thought back on the memory. And as you finished making the drink, you smiled only for a second before remembering where your relationship with Jamie stood today.

You walked into the living room and grabbed a canucks sweatshirt that Jordie had left hanging on the back of the couch and put it on before walking back into the kitchen, grabbing your drink and then making your way out onto the back porch. You turned the light on from inside before unlocking and sliding open the door, closing it behind you. The snow blanketed your backyard and as you looked out at the untouched scene, you played home movies in your mind. Over there in the far left corner, was where your parents had managed to keep alive an old playground set that Jamie and Jordie spent years fighting on. The ancient oak tree nestled in the right corner of your fenced-in backyard was where you broke your arm for the first time. You were eight and Jamie had held you on top of his shoulders so you could reach the hole that he had hidden his report card in from your parents. He lost his footing and the two of you fell backward, your arm taking most of the impact.

The fire pit buried beneath the snow where you had your first 'official' date at fourteen the summer after Jamie's second season with the stars. You parents were out of town, Jenn was on a vacation with Andrew, so it was left to Jordie and Jamie to look after you. Your mom had already told them that they had no authority when it came to canceling your date– but in fact, they were in charge of chaperoning it. Jordie took you guys to a movie and sat ten rows back, which wasn't all that bad considering you were too nervous to do anything anyway. But when it came to having a small bonfire in the backyard, you and your date were more comfortable with each other. If only your brothers were the same.

Every time he tried to scoot his chair near yours, one of the two older Benn boys would come out with water, food or even just straight-up move your chair further away. You would turn and see the two of them peeking from the sliding door and give them the death stare before they ducked back behind a curtain. The last straw was drawn when you thought you had a free moment to have your first kiss. Jordie and Jamie hadn't come out to bother the two of you when you moved into the same seat or when he held your hand. But the moment you and your date closed your eyes and went in for a kiss, Jamie shoved a bag of marshmallows in between you and said, "it's time for smores yeah?"

You were so horrified that you had your date call his mom to come and pick him up and he had to sit in the living room with your two older brothers while you hid away in your bedroom.

Thinking back on it now, you couldn't help but laugh at just how far your two brothers went to protect you. You even tried to tie that into your situation today– but it was hard to even draw up the similarities.

When you heard the door slide open and shut again and a presence appears behind you, it didn't take long to know just who had joined you on the front porch. "How did you know I was out here?"

"I saw the hot toddy stuff on the counter and I know how you like to come out here to think sometimes." He replied, letting the silence fall between you again before making his way closer to you and coming to a stop beside you, clearing some snow off of the deck ledge and resting his arms onto it– he too was holding his drink. "I'm not sick, but it just hits the spot for when you can't sleep."

"I thought the same thing," you replied, looking at him to see him looking out at the backyard.

You wondered if he was looking out into your old childhood backyard and thinking about all of the memories like you were. Or if he was just staring out for the hell of it, trying to think of what to say to you. Hell, you didn't even know if you were going to be able to start a conversation– you sure as hell didn't feel like you needed to. The fact that he had ignored you up until this very moment was almost enough to make you finish your drink and leave him out on the back porch without a word.

Almost.

"Why are you even talking to me?"

You could tell by his slight wince at the harshness of your question, that he was caught off-guard. Perhaps he was planning to initiate the conversation after all? He took a sip of his drink, sucking in his bottom lip before sighing, hanging his head. "Jordie. He was waiting up for Katie and me and when I came back downstairs, he kind of ripped me a new one about what I said to you..."

A huge wave of disappointment washed over you. Was Jamie only talking to you out of obligation to Jordie or was he really interested in fixing things between the two of you? Would your relationship ever be the same again?

"Oh..." You frowned, looking away from him and down at your cup.

"And he's right. I shouldn't have said what I did." His answer caught your attention and you looked at him as he nodded his head from side to side. "I know that you're...a woman now and that you can make your own decisions, no matter how wrong I think they are."

If it wasn't such a serious and long-awaited moment, you would've burst into laughter at how he had whispered the last part. Just Jamie being Jamie and still owning up to his own beliefs while trying to apologize.

"And it was wrong of me to insinuate that you were just another..."

He didn't need to be looking at you for you to see how severely uncomfortable he was starting to feel at repeating his own words. So, like he often did when you were growing up, you stepped in to save him. "It's okay, I know what you mean. And I'm sorry....for everything."

He didn't respond and only kept looking down at his drink as your apology went unnoticed and the silence settled in between the two of you again. You couldn't help but wonder if this was going to be it– the way the two of you would be around each other for the rest of your lives. Sure, the freshness of it all would wear down the road– but the two of you would never forget what started it all. It'd be there like a stain you'd always try to hide, but never could. And if he wasn't going to add on to your conversation, you were stuck– unsure of what else to do to get him to talk to you.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

For some reason, that question hurt you more than seeing his face the moment he recognized you in Tyler's theatre room. It wasn't as if you were planning on hiding it forever, you were going to tell him. And not telling him before he found out, was going to be your biggest regret for a long time– especially since you could hear just how hurt he was just by hearing him ask that small, simple question.

"I think I was scared of what you'd think...or do," you shrugged, taking another sip of our drink before holding onto it tighter, letting the hot cup heat your hands. "I didn't want you to be mad at me or hate me–"

"Yeah, well look at how that turned out," he mumbled, bringing his cup to his mouth.

You traced your tongue along the side of your cheek and ignored the sting of his hushed words. He had a right to be hurt and you knew it, so you were just going to take it and hope that it was the first choice he was feeling and not the second.

"I guess I just...I didn't want you to be disappointed in me, you know? You're my big brother, I look up to you. I should've told you, I understand that now and I guess I...I don't know."

"Yeah, you should've told me." He replied, finally looking away from his cup and turning towards you. "I still would've been mad, but I'd be a lot less mad than I was when I...found you two."

He turned his attention back towards the snow as the two of you took another sip of your drinks. He sighed, probably making the same face as he did when he was a kid. More silence ensued, but this time it wasn't full of tension. Almost like the kind of silence the two of you could live with as if you were hanging out in the living room, playing on your phones.

"How have you been since...how are you?"

You raised your eyebrows in surprise as you stood up a little straighter. You weren't sure if he was really interested or asking just for the hell of it, but you were going to answer anyway as best as you could without giving too much away. "Alright, I guess," you sighed, bringing the cup back to your lips and leaning your head to the side. "Kind of wishing none of it ever happened?"

"Really?" Jamie asked, perking up a little bit as he looked at you again.

You went to answer, but the knot in your throat prevented you from doing so, so you just brought your cup to your lips and took a sip.

He sighed and you knew that he was well aware that you had just lied to him. "I was mad, Y/N. Like, the maddest that I've ever been in my entire life. Seeing you two like that, knowing you guys had been...and behind my back." He shook his head, taking a moment. "I honestly think I could've killed him then and there, and you...for a hot moment, I think I would've been one hundred percent okay if I never had to talk to you or see you again."

For the first time, you finally understood just how hurt Jamie had been and how seriously he took your situation with Tyler. His confession threw you for a surprise. He really would have been okay with never talking to or seeing you again– your own brother. The guy who was always one of the first people to comfort you. Who let you sneak into his room when you were younger because you were scared of the dark. The same guy who, once you stopped sneaking into his room thanks to a new nightlight, often slept on the floor of your bedroom because you were convinced there was a monster in your closet. His confession was enough to move you to tears and you couldn't have stopped them if you tried.

"I'm sorry," you nodded, shaking your head as your bottom lip trembled. "I-I didn't mean to hurt you and I swear everything with Tyler it just...it came out of nowhere." You took a shallow breath before going to speak again, only a small sob escaped instead.

Jamie turned slightly and stepped closer to you, bringing you into his side and rubbing your arm. He wasn't tense at the sudden hug, but instead relaxed and welcoming. "It's okay, Y/N," he said, not minding that you were getting tears on his sweatshirt. "I mean, I don't understand why you felt like you needed to hide it from me, but I do understand why you did. And I've forgiven you for it."

You sniffled, wiping your cheeks with Jordie's sweatshirt sleeve. "And Tyler?"

He paused and you could hear him holding onto his breath as he contemplated how to answer your question. He let you go from his side and sighed as the fear that you just ruined a six-year friendship, ran through your veins. "I don't know yet."

The two of you settled back in your spots on the deck ledge and sipped your drinks in silence as you both stared out at the falling snow. You got your apology, Jamie was finally acknowledging you and you can no longer feel the tension between the two of you...but something still felt off.

"Were you happy?" Jamie asks, turning towards you fully and resting an elbow on the ledge. "With Segs. Were you happy with him?"

You couldn't help but smile as you thought about all of the times you'd spent with Tyler over the last few weeks. All of the study sessions, the times you'd babysit the dogs. His facetime calls just so he could talk to you and Gerry. How you snuck him on to campus one night because he 'wanted to experience the college dorm life' and then only to have him leave the next morning saying that college beds were horrible and that you'd be sleeping at his place for the rest of the year. The time he added bubble bath to his jacuzzi because he's always wanted to do it, but then decided he'd never do it again because of the bill he had to pay to get it cleaned. Every moment was happy and giggly and left you feeling things that you haven't felt in years– not even in your few years with Cole.

"Yeah," you nodded, letting the smile fall when you looked Jamie in the eye. "Really happy."

"Why?"

You laughed softly at just how blunt Jamie's question was and how serious and bland his tone had been. You shrugged, holding your cup close to you. "I don't know how to explain it, really. I mean, we have chemistry–"

"No, please don't get into that."

"Not only that kind," you rolled your eyes. "It's like...we just get each other, you know? With Cole, it was like he never cared about my interests, my friends or my family. He didn't have the interest to know what I want to do in five years, where I want to travel. We didn't have the same sense of humor and when I'd chirp at him, he couldn't handle it."

"With Tyler," you laughed, tossing your head back softly before nodding and pointing at Jamie. "Do you remember that first roadie I went on with you guys? To Colorado? Well, on the plane ride there I had to fill out study cards, but I fell asleep. On the plane ride back, I found them already made in Tyler's messy handwriting that he tried to make neat, and he helped me study by letting me use him as an anatomy doll. I taped notecards all over him while the guys in the back of the plane laughed, and he just...let it happen. He even tried to learn it too."

You took a long sip of your drink, reminiscing on that first moment when you realized how much Tyler had meant to you. "He already loves and knows my family and my friends, but he still asks about them. Those first few weeks, he asked more about me than Cole had ever asked during our entire relationship. Not to mention, he can take my chirping and give it right back. He's saved me in a bar, picked me up at a party when I was stranded with no ride. He respects me, my choices, he understands that I'm an independent woman who can stand up for herself because she had two older brothers who taught her how to hold her own. But he's still...there, you know?"

Jamie looked at you in silence but seemed as if he was taking your words into serious consideration. Speaking about your time with Tyler made you sad and realize just how much you missed having him in your life. You haven't heard anything from him since the text he sent to you before the game and you figured that he was mad at you because you lied and told him you were staying instead of leaving. You wouldn't allow yourself to even being to imagine how his face looked when he walked into the hallway to see that you weren't there.

"It doesn't matter though, it's over. Tyler probably hates me and...it's over, it's all over." You sighed and chugged the rest of your drink, letting out a harsh sigh before pushing yourself away from the ledge. "I'm going to bed though, I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight."

You turned to walk away and towards the door, tugging on the handle and sliding it open. "Do you want it to be over though?" Jamie asked. "If you could be with him right now...would you?"

You held onto the handle and turned around to look at Jamie. "I love him, J." He opened his mouth to cut you off, but you shook your head. "And I know you think I'm stupid for saying that...and no, I don't know if we would've last or if it was just a short fling...but I do, J. I love him with my whole heart."

You stared at him, trying your best to get a read on his reaction as he just looked at you and registered your words while hoping more than anything, that he'd come to accept your feelings for Tyler. He sucked in his lips and nodded before turning back towards the backyard. "Goodnight, Y/N."

You felt disappointment come over you, a shallow ache echoed in your chest as you made your way back into the house, closing the door behind you. You placed your cup into the sink and tossed Jordie's sweatshirt onto the kitchen counter before walking up the stairs and back into your bedroom. You crawled back into your bed, the hot toddy making your body warm as you tried to focus on your breathing and the tears built up. You took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, trying not to wake Kennedy when another sob escaped.

You felt Kennedy shift and roll onto her side, reaching out and grabbing your hand. "Tyler?"

"Pfft, what?" You sniffled, shaking your head. "No, why would you think that?"

"Because you have 'The Summer I Turned Pretty' trilogy on your bedside table– and you always read it when you're sad."

You went to take another deep breath, only letting out a shuddered one. "Because it has a happy ending...stupid happy endings."

"Yeah, who needs happy endings," Kennedy replied, squeezing your hand.

"Me!" You cried, sniffling as you turned to Kennedy and laughing at how ridiculous you probably looked. "I want one."

Kennedy sighed, squeezing your hand again and staring at the ceiling. "I know, I know."

[ DECEMBER 25TH, 2019 ]

A Christmas Miracle, that's all you could call it. It was as if some Christmas Angel had been watching you and Jamie have your late night heart to heart, because since then– it was like the blip between the two of you never even happened. Everyone was thrilled to see the two of you joking and talking to one another again, probably no one more thrilled than your mom. He even indulged in his yearly Hallmark Christmas movie argument with you, like he did every year.

And, like they've done every year on your birthday since you could even remember, your two older brothers found a way to toss you into a snowbank as a morning wake up. After the age of 13, you found it extremely annoying and always struggled against them as they'd carry you to the backyard. But considering everything that happened, you were more than willing to participate in the festivities. Since your birthday took place on Christmas, your family always had a specific Christmas routine.

The two older Benn boys would toss you into the snowbank, you'd change into the clothes that your mom already had set aside. Then you'd all eat your favorite breakfast (which Jamie and Jordie groomed you to love their favorite breakfast from the moment you had a choice), everyone would settle in with their coffee and drinks of choice before relaxing in the living room. As the birthday girl, you'd always get to open the first present and then everyone would do their gift exchanges. When gifts were done, your dad would put in the first one many original classic Christmas movies and you'd relax all day until the night came. At night, the family would gather up and drive a few blocks down to the Wilkinson's Christmas Tree farm for pond skating and hot chocolate.

It was always a fun-filled day, and besides you finally turning 22 years old, you loved the traditions the day brought and the love and happiness that radiated all around you. The best surprise came when you had Kennedy answer the door to her Christmas present. She squealed when she saw Big Rig standing there with a Santa hat on and a cheesy grin. And when she jumped into his arms and he spun her around on your front porch, your heart swelled with joy. You knew he was coming, the two of you had planned it sometime after Kennedy had gone home. His family was already planning on visiting extended family in Vancouver on Christmas and he thought he'd stop by around late-afternoon to surprise her.

When she found out you were in on the surprise, she tackled you with a hug and then told you that she hated you– but you just told her that you loved her too and to go get her man. As the day dwindled on, you saw how happy everyone was around one another and realized just how incredibly single you were. You looked down at your phone and opened your messages, staring down at Tyler's contact and re-reading his last message over and over again. You opened the message and took a deep breath, typing one up.

Merry Christmas ☃️🎄

You stared at the screen as the small delivered appeared beneath your message. When the three moving dots appeared on his side, you felt your heart skip a beat and the grip on your phone get a little tighter. Maybe he wasn't mad at you after all and was just giving you space to reach out to him?

All of that hope went away just as soon as the three dots disappeared. You felt yourself literally crumble as you hoped that they'd pop up again, but never did. You locked your phone and sighed, before joining your family outside so that you guys could head to the Wilkinson farm.

The Wilkinson's were longtime family friends who owned a Christmas tree farm that had been passed down through generations of family. Over time, instead of just selling Christmas trees, they would sell hot chocolate, have pictures with Santa for the kids, a little 'Elfs workshop' where you could buy small gifts, and in the middle of the space, not too far away from all the small festivities, was a frozen pond where you could go ice skating for the small price of $5 if you had your own skates and $7 if you needed to rent them.

It was a tradition to not only get your Christmas tree from the Wilkinson's but on Christmas night, to go ice skating out on the pond with the Wilkinson's and a few other families as well. It was probably your favorite part of the day because just being around all of the close families and skating around with the kids you grew up with was the best.

But at the moment, that wasn't looking all too cheery.

"Can you at least pretend to be excited?" Kennedy asked, closing the car door behind her. "The look on your face could melt Frosty the Snowman if he was around."

"Oh, I'm sorry," you replied, clasping your hands together. "Let me just smile and wave while I tag along on this," you looked around your group, counting everyone. "This eight-person date. Nothing makes me happier than being the ninth wheel around couples."

"I can be your stand-in, pretend boyfriend if you want?" Big Rig laughed, fixing his coat. "It'd make me look good since I'd have two beautiful girls on my arms."

"I can share," Kennedy laughed, hooking her arm through his. "You can look, but don't touch."

You smiled and rolled your eyes. "Don't worry, he's all yours Kennedy."

"Are you guys coming or no?" Jamie called out. The three of you turned to see the rest of your group already heading towards the small cabin where you would rent your skates.

"Ugh, let's just get this over with, yeah?" You groaned, walking ahead of them and stuffing your free hand into your jacket pocket. You normally weren't such a grouch, but your mood hasn't been the same since you sent that text to Tyler and knew that he had read it. You spent the entire car ride trying to tell yourself that it wasn't your fault– that even before you left the arena, you knew that the damage had been done.

You were just now seeing how life would be without Tyler in it like he used to be.

"Go ahead and go to the pond, Y/N. We're just going to grab some skates." Jordie said, waving you off in the direction towards the pond.

"I'm sorry?" You asked, holding up your skates. "Did I miss the part where the three NHL boys and two parents of NHL players...forgot their skates?"

Jamie rolled his eyes and stepped away from the counter where Tyler Wilkinson, your first crush and three years your senior, was chatting with your parents. He walked over to you and gave you a gentle nudge away from them all. "We're helping Katie, Jessi, Kennedy and Big Rig get skates. Just go snag us a bench before someone else takes one."

You nodded but mumbled incoherently beneath your breath as you walked through the path that leads you directly through the Christmas trees and out towards the pond. The farm itself was looking barren since it was Christmas and the Wilkinson's had sold every available tree that was for sale. The further you walked, the more you could begin to smell the freshness of the trees that still had time to grow until they would be sold in the Christmas's to come. Lined up on both sides of the path were string lights on poles, linking together to light the path.

The trees began to thin out as you came to the opening of the skating area. Strangely, there was no one else around, which was extremely odd since your family was already running a little late than normal and most of the time you guys weren't the first family here. You walked over to a bench and plopped down, getting ready to put on your skates when you noticed something spread along the ice. You turned back towards the path to see if anyone from your group was coming before reaching for your phone and calling Jamie.

Only it went straight to voicemail. You rolled your eyes and waited for his automatic message to finish before speaking. "Is this place closed because nobody else is here. There's also like," you sighed and stood up, making your way over to the ice, carefully stepping on and sliding your way over to the object. "It's this shadow on the ice and hold on, I'm getting closer to it. It's– what the hell?"

Your eyebrows furrowed as you moved closer to what was previously a dark spot on the ice. As you got closer to it– you saw it for what it was...a bottle of wine and a box of your favorite cookies. Surrounding them were printed out pictures positioned to spell something out.

'I'm Sorry'

You slowly moved closer to the pictures, carefully squatting down and picking one up to see it was a candid of you and Marshall snuggling on Tyler's couch. As you looked at the rest of them, you felt your chest flutter. They were all pictures of you. Some of them were selfies of you and Tyler, but most of them were candids of you doing simple things– napping on his lap, studying on the couch, tanning with the dogs, glaring at Tyler after he had spilled flour everywhere on one of the nights you made pizza. Every picture held a memory, all of them you remembered, but none you realized had been captures. Your eyes skimmed them all and landed on the last one that was propped up against the wine bottle and cookies. You reached forward and picked it up, bringing it closer to you before you laughed.

It was a picture of a night where you, Kennedy, Big Rig and Tyler were all hanging out at Tyler's place. Kennedy or Big Rig must have taken the picture because it was of you and Tyler sitting on the couch, obviously trying to cuddle and Gerry was trying to force his way between you while Cash was sprawled out across your lap and Marshall was lying on the floor in front of you, staring at his two brothers. Tyler was laughing and trying to push Gerry off while looking at you with the sweetest eyes and you just had your head tossed back into a full-on fit of laughter.

It was a perfect representation of what your relationship was like– always laughing and pure joy.

You heard someone else join you on the ice and you immediately knew who it was, just based on how the hairs on the back of your neck stood up and your heart pounded against your chest. "Hey, Y/N..."

You wanted to turn around and just run into his arms before the tears got the chance to fall down your face, but you reminded yourself of the hell he had put you through the last two weeks and for once, your body listened to your brain. "What are you doing here?"

You heard him move closer but kept your back to him, fearful that if you even got the tiniest look at him, your courage and defense would come crumbling down in an instant. "You didn't meet me after the game and I..." He sighed, frustrated, "we need to talk about everything."

"I meant what I said Tyler, you had two weeks to reach out to talk to me– to explain everything, but you never did. So why should I give you the chance to do it now?"

"You shouldn't, that's the thing." You hadn't expected him to agree with you if anything you expected him to plead his case and beg for a chance. "But if you do give me the chance...I'll take whatever time you give me."

You took a deep breath, your eyes looking down at the display that suddenly made complete sense. He had set this up on the ice. He had printed off these pictures he'd taken of you and saved– obviously you had meant something to him more than you previously thought. You cleared your throat and put the picture in your hand in your pocket as you brought out your phone and opened the timer. You set it for five minutes before turning around and showing him your screen and pressing the start button. "You've got five minutes."

You were right. One look at him and you wanted to run over to him and just fall into his arms. His hair was disheveled and curled. He was dressed down in jeans, sneakers and a Dallas Stars sweatshirt that you knew all too well. He was in his relaxed element and it was how you loved him the most.

"Okay five minutes, phew okay, um," He stuttered over his own words as he simultaneously struggled to get his hands out of his sweatshirt pockets. "I'm sorry that I never texted you after everything. I meant to– I even typed up a bunch of messages and I just...I never sent them because I don't– I don't know why. God, why is this so hard?" He groaned, rubbing his hands down his face.

"Four minutes."

"Shit, okay I guess I didn't text you because I wanted that to be a face to face conversation? I just, I didn't want to drop shit like that over a text. And the uber thing, God, I fucking wish I could take that back so much, Y/N. Cassidy and Candace even told me how much of a douchebag I was for that. I didn't mean to make you feel like you were just another side piece and I think, I think I was just in fucking shock over how everything just imploded right in front of me."

"Three." You said, taking a glance at your phone before looking back at him. He had maintained eye contact with you every moment he vented, which only made you more emotional. He was covering his bases well and the desperation in his voice and pain in his eyes helped you know that he was meaning every single word. But he still hadn't talked about the one thing you wanted him to explain most of all.

"You were right, about me still being that kid in Boston. I mean, I'm not– I don't want to be. I've worked hard on myself and I've grown up since being here in Dallas– a lot of that was because of Chubb–Jamie. And I think, I think I just panicked over losing not just you...but him too." He stepped closer to you, shaking his head. "I, he's one of my best friends, Y/N. And the pain of even thinking about not having you in my life was horrible– like that shit gave me a migraine. But losing the both of you? I don't think I could even fucking survive."

"Two minutes."

His eyes looked at your phone and you saw them widen in fear. He had so much to say and knew he was running out of time to say it, but couldn't quite phrase it just right. "That's why I didn't text, call or even talk to you in person to explain. I just– I wanted to fix things with Jamie and explain to him that what happened with us, that it wasn't malicious or a stupid hit it and quit it situation– that I actually cared for you and he just, he wouldn't listen."

"You called me an obsessed hook up in the locker room." You said, speaking for the first time other than reading out how much time he had left. "Care to explain that?"

He opened his mouth to speak and closed it, the pattern happening twice before he shook his head and tried to blink away the faint tears that shined in his eyes. "I was frustrated at your brother and that stupid comment Draisaitl made about you and me to Jamie and just," he stepped towards you reaching for your hand and grabbing on to it, staring at it when he realized you hadn't pulled away. "I didn't mean it, I'd never mean that. You're–"

"45 seconds." You said, pulling your hand away from his.

He blinked a few times before nodding his head and licking his lips. "I never invited Maisy to the game, she came herself with her boyfriend and his cousin and her roommate. She just picked those seats because she liked the view and her boyfriend had never been to a game before."

You wanted to ask how he knew that, but you knew there was really only one way he'd find out– he'd have to ask.

"I called her, that same night after the game. I was an honest ass about it too, wondering what the hell she was pulling and she told me everything. She was never there for me. I didn't invite her and I didn't buy her those tickets, Y/N. I would have never done that to you," he reached for you only this time his hand came up to your face. "You were never just a hook-up to me. You were so much more than that and I think that I even lo..." He paused, looking down as your phone timer rang, erupting in between the two of you and signaling that his time was over with. His Adam's apple bobbed as he looked back up at you with hope in his eyes. "You're still so much more to me than that," he whispered, his thumb brushing away a tear on your cheek that you hadn't even noticed started to fall down your cheek.

You took a small step away from him, holding up your phone. "Five minutes is up. Tha–" you cleared your throat and took a breath, relaxing yourself. "Thank you for explaining everything."

He sucked in his bottom lip and nodded his head taking a step back and stuffing his hands in his sweatshirt pockets. "It's the least I could do after putting you through all of that. Thank you for letting me talk, I know you didn't have to do that."

He turned to walk away and paused mid-step, smiling at you. "Happy Birthday by the way. 22 years old? God, what are you an old lady now?" He added a sad mimic of his usual glowing childlike smile.

You gave him a small smile back. "Better than 27 and having joints that crack like an 80-year-olds every time I walk."

He laughed a small and genuine laugh before giving you one last look and turning his back to you, shuffling his way across the ice slowly. You watched him walk away, your heart screaming not to let him go while your brain was wondering how the hell he even got here in the first place. When you went to put your phone back into your pocket, you felt the picture and a quick flashing memory of that day and every day in between, passed by your eyes. The smiles, the laughter, the way you felt comfortable and safe in his arms– you missed it all.

"Tyler, wait! You called out, causing him to stop before he could even get that far away. He turned as you started to shuffle your way across the ice the short distance he managed to travel. "These pictures," you brought out the photograph and pointed at the rest. "Where did you get them?"

"Are you kidding?" He laughed, digging into his pocket and bringing out his phone. He typed away on it before turning it handing you his phone and showing you an album that had been strictly dedicated to you, the dogs and himself.

Titled: 💚🌎

"Honestly, when you rightfully chewed me out in the hallway, I just had this gut feeling that it was over and that maybe I should delete the photos but," he leaned over and looked at the screen, shrugging his shoulders. "As you said, my times with you were some of the greatest memories I've had in Dallas. And even if you didn't want anything to do with me anymore...I still wanted to keep those. Because to me, these pictures," he pointed at the screen and smiled at you. "Those are my favorite memories, the ones that never fail to make me smile. You're my favorite memory of Dallas, Y/N. Not the partying, the people I've met or the fancy events I go to. But you."

You scrolled through the album and saw even more pictures than the ones he had printed out and your heart was feeling like it could just erupt. You looked up at him with tears in your eyes and your bottom lip trembling. "You really hurt me Tyler..."

"I know," he said, shaking his head and the pain and understanding in his eyes evident. "And I will never fucking forgive myself for that, Y/N. I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to say 'fuck you' and kick my dumbass to the curb and never talk to me again." He stood closer to you, closing up any space between your bodies. "And if by some Christmas miracle, you decide to forgive me and give me a second chance...I'd do anything to make it right."

"Anything?" You asked, looking up at him to see him nodding. "Can I have my '#1 labrador mom' keychain back? I miss my puppers."

He laughed and pulled the lanyard along with his house key out of his sweatshirt pocket. "They miss you too, almost as more as I do. Keyword, almost." He handed you the keychain and looked back at you with hopeful eyes. "Anything else?"

You held onto the lanyard tightly and nodded. "Kiss me?"

This time, his real smile took over his face as he wrapped an arm around your waist and pulled you against him, pressing a kiss to your lips. You wrapped both arms around his neck and pulled him into, savoring the kiss before tucking your head into the crook of his neck and closing your eyes. He wrapped his other arm around your waist before picking you up and spinning you around in a daring circle.

"Tyler, no skates!" You squealed, holding onto him tighter as he put you back onto the ice.

He smiled at you, catching his breath before ducking down and kissing you once, twice, three times and pulling you back into his chest. "I missed you so fucking much, Y/N."

"Say it." You said, looking up at him and resting your chin on his chest. "What you were going to say before the timer went off."

He gave you a knowing smile before brushing a piece of hair out of your face and resting his hand on the back of your head. "I love you."

You smiled and jumped up and more into his arms, knocking him off of his feet and onto his ass. The two of you laughed as you straddled over him and pressed another kiss to his lip while your left hand, still holding onto the lanyard, cradled his face. "I love you too." You whispered, feeling his grip around your waist tighten.

He smiled, nudging his nose against your own. "I know."

"OKAY LOVEBIRDS, GET OFF THE ICE SO WE CAN SKATE, EH?" Big Rig yelled out, causing the two of you to look over and see that you had an audience waiting for you at the edge of the pond.

You felt your heart hammer against your chest as you saw Jamie standing there with Katie. You were nervous about what he thought about Tyler's trip here on Christmas to rekindle what you guys had started months earlier. Tyler took the initiative to stand up first, helping you off of the ice and dusting you off before holding onto the hand and leading the two of you to the edge of the pond.

"I forgot to ask," you said, looking at him as he stepped off of the pond first. "How did you even know I was going to be here?"

Before Tyler could say anything, he was cut off. "I called him." You turned to see Jamie stepping towards you and not stopping until he was standing directly in front of you and Tyler. "After my conversation with Jordie and then talking to you...I reached out to him."

You looked at Tyler who gave you a smile and a nod. "We talked everything out and he told me to come out here."

"You helped him plan this?" You asked, looking at Jamie with a confused look.

"Cassidy, Candace and I helped him plan the pictures, cookies, and wine," Kennedy smiled, snuggling into Big Rig's side. "But everything else was him."

"I wouldn't say everything else. I just got him here and kept everyone back at the skate rental." He said, looking back at Kennedy and then at Tyler. "But the rest was Seggy."

You looked at Jamie and tried to read him. There wasn't any tension in his stance towards Tyler, nor was he sending him secret death glares. Instead, he had the same protective brother energy radiating off of him like he did on your first date or around any other guy who tried to date you.

And for the first time ever, you didn't care.

You rushed from Tyler's side and practically tackled Jamie with a hug, squeezing him as tight as you had your eyes shut. He hugged you just as tight, even lifting you off of the ground just a tad. "I love you and I just want what's best for you, Y/N. And if that's Seggy, then I'm on your side...100%." He whispered, kissing the top of your head.

"I love you too J...thank you." You pulled out of his arms and looked back at Tyler with a smile before turning back to your family group. "So, are we skating or what?"

"Well, considering there's a big romantic gesture in the middle of the pond, I don't know how we can do–OW!" Jordie said, looking at Jessi before sighing. "Okay, I guess we can go pick it up. Come on Jamie."

Everyone sat down and talked as they got their skates on and as you looked around the group, you felt like you were once again floating on cloud nine. A hand appeared in front of your face and you looked up to see Tyler smiling at you and nodding his head towards the ice. "Skate?"

"Sure thing, Seguin. As long as you don't go breaking a hip on me." You replied, rolling your eyes.

He laughed and pulled you up off of the bench and the two of you skated around on the ice, hand in hand. "I'll save the hip breaking for the Family Skate at the Winter Classic." He looked down at you. "You're coming to that, right?"

"As a part of Jamie's family or..." You didn't dare say the other option, fearful that you were jumping into a whole nother conversation.

But Tyler smiled and held up your intertwined hands in between the two of you. "You can go as Jamie's family, sure. But I was kind of hoping that you'd you know...skate with me..." He nodded his head side to side, hoping that you'd be able to fill in the blanks but you just smiled. "As my girlfriend? Unless you're totally scared of me beating you in the race we will most definitely be having."

"I'd love to," you smiled, reaching up and kissing him on the lips. "And for the record, I'd totally beat your ass."

He raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Would you like to test that theory?"

You smirked, dropping his hand and winking at him. "You're on."

#tyler seguin imagine #tyler seguin oneshot #tyler seguin writing #tyler seguin one shot #nhl imagine #nhl writing #nhl oneshot #nhl one shot #hockey imagine #hockey oneshot #hockey writing #hockey one shot #ldyk fic #my writing

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st-crylo · 4 years

Text

Rebound

Part 2

A/N: I’m gonna try to keep this updated weekly, especially since the response to it has been so good :,). Thank you guys so much, I really appreciate y’all for taking time to read my fics!!

Warnings: mostly just swearing, alcohol mention, tobacco use, infidelity

Word Count: 6.2K

Tagging:@haylaansmi @nankstasty @thomasscresswell

Masterlist

As you walked through the door, you saw your mom waiting for you in the kitchen, reading some article in a magazine. When she heard the door close, she looked up and smiled at you.

“How was the first day back?” she asked, a little too enthusiastically.

“Not terrible. Made some new friends,” you replied before heading up the stairs to your room, trying to avoid any more questions. You didn’t want to have to lie to your mom about the new friends you’d made, especially since she saw Kylo how everyone else did.

Closing the door to your room, you heaved a sigh before throwing your backpack onto the ground, and plopping down on your bed, pulling out your phone to see an email. Curious, you opened the notification, then groaned when you saw who the sender was.

(y/n), we really need to talk. I understand that you probably have me blocked, so I had to go to drastic measures. As much as there is I want to say to you, a lot of it can’t be said over an email. However, I do think you should know that I really don’t think you should be hanging out with Ben Solo. He’s not the kind of person someone like you should hang around, and he’s nothing more than a common criminal. I’m only looking out for you. I love you, Shawn.

You wanted to throw your phone across the room, scream at the top of your lungs, and maybe break something. The rage inside you was boiling hot, and you felt like a kettle, left on the stove too long. What kind of desperate asshole decides an email is a great way to contact the girl you cheated on? Why did he even expect a response from you? Most importantly, how dare he claim to love you. The whole thing had you heated, but you held your composure as you deleted the email, and pulled the little slip of paper with Kylo’s number on it out.

You stared at the number, and thought about Kylo’s idea. If you were being completely honest, Shawn’s email made you consider it more seriously. After all, it was obvious that the idea of you even hanging around Kylo set something off in him. If the two of you were to “date,” he would probably lose his shit. Admittedly, the idea of watching Shawn implode like that would be kinda fun.

At the same time, you didn’t know this person. Not Kylo, you’d known him so long, even though today seemed more like a reintroduction instead of a reunion. No, you weren’t sure you knew who you were. You’d never wished ill upon someone like this, and certainly never considered going through with something so major in order to upset someone. That had never really been your style, and you’d always looked down at people who did stuff like that.

But did you really know yourself at all?

You’d been with Shawn for three years, all of high school, really. Those were the most formative years of your life, and they’d been shaped by your boyfriend. Were you really this suburban good girl, who only had good friends, had never even been to a high school party, and certainly never rebelled against even her parents? Or were those things that Shawn had shaped you to be? After all, the more you thought about it, the more you realised his opinions had affected a lot of the way you acted. So now, you were left at an impasse. Were you really who you’d acted as your first three years of high school, or were you someone else entirely that you’d never gotten to discover?

You created a contact for Kylo on your phone, and typed up a message.

What exactly would us “dating” entail?

You started at the screen of your phone as you watched the dots appear as Kylo started texting back. There was a little bit of anxiety in your chest, but the idea of “dating” Kylo filled you with a sense of thrill as well.

We wouldn’t be “dating” right away. We’d pretend to flirt for a while and then start dating. Do basic couple shit at school, but especially wherever him or his little friends can see.

Made sense. It wouldn’t be smart to jump straight to dating, that would be too suspicious. Admittedly, you weren’t entirely sure how to flirt, but you were sure you could get some advice somewhere. You pulled up your keyboard to respond.

We should also make sure to go on dates, too. That way, we can convince your parents we’re dating too.

After all, Kylo had to have something in it as well, and he said he wanted to convince his parents he was improving.

Shit, I forgot about that. I’ll have to bring you around Gran and Granpa too, if that’s okay with you.

Yeah, that’s fine.

So is that a yes?

You thought for a moment. Was this really the decision you wanted to make? Then, you thought about the picture, and thought about the email.

Hell yeah.

***

The next morning, you didn’t have to fight so hard to get out of bed. You actually took the time to throw on some jeans instead of leggings. Most importantly, your heart didn’t feel so heavy. It was like you finally had an inkling of hope in the form of revenge. Looking out of your bedroom window, you noticed how the sky was still overcast, but there was no rain. However, just to be on the safe side, you threw on your jacket and made sure to bring your umbrella.

Walking down the steps, you peeked into the kitchen from the top of the stairs, making sure the coast was clear before continuing your descent. Your dad was there, sipping his morning coffee and reading something on his phone, but your mom was nowhere in sight. Letting out a small sigh of relief, you continued down the stairs, noticing your lunch bag and a small note on the island.

“Morning, (y/n),” your dad said, not looking up from his phone.

“Morning,” you responded before picking up the note.

Morning, dear. I had to head to work early today, but I went ahead and packed your lunch. Have a good day at school! Love, mom.

A small frown pulled the corners of your mouth down a little. You loved your mom, but she had been trying too hard to cheer you up instead of letting you simply wallow in your misery for a couple of days. You neatly folded the note and put it in your pocket before taking your lunch off the counter.

“Bye, dad,” you said as you headed for the front door. Your dad gave you a final wave goodbye before you opened the door, heading out into the world.

Unsurprisingly, Kylo was sitting there, presumably waiting for you as he leaned against the back of his Mustang, smoking his morning cigarette. He must’ve been out there for a while, because he dropped the butt onto the ground before stomping it out and picking it back up. When he came back up, he noticed you and smiled.

“Want another ride?” He asked, standing straight and running a hand through his long hair.

“Beats walking,” you said, walking up to the Skywalker driveway and climbing into the car as Kylo threw his cigarette butt away. Kylo climbed in next, starting the car as soon as he closed the door.

“So my uncle told Gran and Granpa that you and I have been hanging out,” Kylo started as he pulled out of the driveway. ��Can you believe they already want you over for dinner?”

You shook your head with a smile on your face. Even though they were your next door neighbors, you hadn’t really spoken to Kylo’s grandparents. “Sounds like fun. When?”

“Friday,” Kylo responded

You simply nodded in response before staring out of the passenger window. Then, you remembered.

“Do you want to hear about something Shawn sent to me yesterday?” you asked, turning to Kylo. He furrowed his brows in confusion as he glanced at you from his peripherals.

“Did you not block him?” he asked, the same confusion he wore on his face mixed into his tone.

“No, I did. He sent me this through email, if you can believe it,” you said.

“Go ahead, I’m all ears,” he replied.

You recalled the contents of the email to the best of your ability, and as you did, you watched Kylo’s knuckles slowly turn white as he tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

“And after all of that, he has the nerve to say he loves me? After everything he’s put me through, he has the balls to say he loves me? Apparently not, if he’s perfectly okay sticking his tongue down some other girl’s throat,” you said with an angry huff, as tears threatened to fall. They weren’t sad tears, however. No, these were the tears of pure unbridled rage that only became realized when you talked about the situation out loud. It was weird, but admittedly the feeling was welcome. You were tired of being sad, and angry was a much better improvement. At least with anger you could stop moping around.

“I hate that shit,” Kylo commented as he stopped at the red light at the end of the neighborhood. “They always try to tell you they love you, but if they loved you they wouldn’t have cheated in the first place. Fuck that.”

“My sentiments exactly.” There was another good thing about Kylo; he could relate to you. You knew that none of your friends had ever been cheated on before, so it was a lot harder to talk to them about it. Kylo, though, he knew the pain, the resentment, everything. He would know exactly how you were feeling and not make any judgments-not that he would do it whether or not he’d experienced it anyways. It was such a different change of scenery, it was honestly refreshing.

Not that you didn’t love your friends, you treasured them dearly. There was just something about knowing someone who’d had the same experiences as you.

The light turned green and Kylo drove forward into the school parking lot, maneuvering into his spot. When he placed the car in park, there was a small ding from his phone, and he grabbed it, checking the notification.

“Milo’s gonna drop Sami and Alan off, so they’re gonna hang with us before class. Means you can meet Milo,” Kylo said before texting a reply. You didn’t know why, but you had a really good feeling about Milo. After all, he was a friend of Kylo’s.

It was about five minutes later when a grey Honda Civic pulled up beside the two of you. Needless to say, that was not what you were expecting. You watched as Sami and Alan stepped out of the Honda Civic, followed by who you assumed was Milo.

He was maybe an inch taller than Kylo, his hair bleached white with dark brown barely peeking out at the roots of his hair. He had a cigarette between his lips, and you wondered if that was where Kylo had picked up the habit. When Kylo rolled down your window, he leaned against the car and peered in through the window while Alan and Sami climbed into the backseat behind the driver’s seat. Once they were in the back, Kylo set the seat back, settling in and closing the door.

“You must be (y/n),” he said, holding out his hand to you. You shook his hand and smiled up at him.

“That’s me,” you answered before dropping your hand onto your lap.

“So, are we still on for Friday?” Milo asked, turning to Kylo. Kylo frowned before letting out a sigh.

“Shit, I forgot. Told my grandparents that me and (y/n) would have dinner with them. If you wanna go later though, I can probably sneak out,” Kylo responded, running a hand through his hair.

“That’s fine, just don’t get caught. Wanna come along too, (y/n)? Sami, Alan, Phasma, and Pat are coming,” Milo said, turning back to you.

“Where exactly?” you asked, turning to Kylo.

“Jordan’s place, she graduated with Milo. She’s having a kickback before heading to Coruscant for college,” Kylo explained.

“I don’t want to intrude,” you started, a little uncomfortable about being invited to the house of someone you didn’t know.

“If you go, Kylo might not have to sneak out,” Sami suggested from the back. “Besides, Jordan’s really chill, I think you’d like her.”

“How would her going with me make it to where I don’t have to sneak out?” Kylo asked, turning around to face Sami.

“Well, no one really expects (y/n) to go to a party. She could just tell your grandparents that the two of you are going to study,” Sami offered. As you thought it over, it was a pretty decent idea. You didn’t really have the party reputation, and everyone knew it.

“I’m game,” you answered. Kylo looked at you with a look of surprise, but simply shrugged as he pulled out a cigarette from the box.

“Sick. I’ll see you Friday then. I gotta go, I have a shift in thirty minutes. See ya, Alan, bye babe!” Milo said before blowing a kiss to Sami. She smiled back at him and waved goodbye as he climbed back into his car, driving off out of the parking lot.

“Oh, (y/n), you might wanna tell your parents you’re staying at my place on Friday night,” Sami said as Kylo lit his cigarette. “Jordan usually has drinks at her ‘kickbacks.’” You nodded as you looked back at her.

“So did he ask you yet?” came Alan’s voice, his eyes refusing to leave the screen of his phone.

“As a matter of fact,” Kylo said after taking the first drag of his cig. “I did. Me and (y/n) are planning to ‘date.’ And Sami thought I wouldn’t have the balls.” He blew the smoke out of the window, before taking another drag.

“I never said that,” Sami said with a frown. “I just said that your explanation of your plan seemed a little lacking. I’m glad you agreed, though, (y/n). Shawn’s a piece of shit.”

“You’re telling me,” you said as you let out a sigh. “Can’t wait to see the look on his smug little face when I start ‘dating’ someone he hates. Wasn’t aware that Kylo shared his plan with everyone, though.” A small flush arose in Kylo’s cheeks, and he didn’t make eye contact with you.

“You would be surprised, when he’s not being an emo prick, he won’t shut the fuck up,” Alan added, looking up with a smirk. Kylo looked back at him with his brows furrowed.

“Like you’re one to talk,” Kylo huffed out. He finished up the last of his cigarette before checking the clock. It was 8:00 already.

“Shit, let’s get going, punks,” Sami said, lightly kicking the back of Kylo’s seat.

“Fuck, I’m getting out. Hand me my bag,” Kylo said as he tossed the cigarette butt into the car’s ashtray. Without warning, a black backpack went flying towards Kylo and hit him on the chest. “Fuck you, Sami.” He grabbed his bag by the straps and stepped out of the car, bringing the seat forward so Sami and Alan could climb out. You stepped out of the car and closed the door behind you, putting your backpack onto your shoulders while you waited for everyone to step out. Kylo walked forward first and you fell into step beside him.

As the four of you walked into the building, you could feel people turn to stare at you, and you remembered your reputation. You weren’t the kind of girl to hang out with Kylo Ren and his ilk, you were one of the good girls. A small voice in the back of your head resented that.

Alan split off pretty quickly, bidding his farewell before heading to his first class. Sami was next, saying she wanted to be early to art, so she said her goodbye before speeding away.

“Guess I’ll see you at lunch,” Kylo said as the two of you parted, and you headed for your econ class.

Much like yesterday, the pace of which your first two classes moved was painfully slow. You weren’t surprised, the first day of actual class was horrible, but you tried to stay focused and take notes. Whenever you got distracted, though, you kept thinking about the plan you and Kylo had established. It felt like the perfect revenge, “dating” someone Shawn hated. However, the more you thought about it, the more you wondered why exactly Shawn hated Kylo. Kylo had said it was because he’d punched Shawn, but you felt like there was something there that you were missing, some truth that Kylo didn’t want to say.

You couldn’t worry about it too much, though. It was Kylo’s business, and you didn’t want to pry if he didn’t want to tell you exactly what had happened. You definitely weren’t going to go to Shawn for the reason, and you doubted that Shawn would tell you the truth anyways, so it would have to remain an unsolved mystery in your mind.

Lunch could not have come sooner, and as you flowed into the cafeteria with the rest of the people who had third lunch, you looked around for your new group of friends. You saw Phasma first, who waved at you to come over to her. As you walked closer, you watched as she stepped out to the outdoor seating, and you followed, noticing everyone else sitting there too. There were only a handful of other groups outside as well, so it was much more quiet and calm than being in the loud cafeteria.

“Man, Mr. Jinn’s class is kicking my ass,” you heard Alan say as you sat down between Phasma and Kylo.

“How, it’s only the second day of classes?” Phasma asked before biting into a roll.

“Have you ever had Mr. Jinn’s class, Phasma?” Kylo asked, putting a bookmark in the book he was reading.

“No.”

“Then don’t say shit. He’s a cool guy, but damn he gives a lot of homework. Alan, if you need help, don’t come to me,” Kylo said, leaning against the table. Alan frowned as he looked up at Kylo.

“Wow, thanks, Kylo, you’re such a hero,” he quipped.

“So, (y/n), how was the beginning of your second day?” Sami asked, pushing aside her untouched lunch as she leaned forward to talk to you.

“It was alright, but I’m getting tired of people staring at me,” you responded. Even though you’d tried your hardest to focus, the whispers were still hard to ignore. It almost felt like you were being punished for Shawn’s actions.

“People don’t know how to mind their own goddamn business,” Phasma stated. “They just want shit to gossip about. When you’re not the fresh gossip anymore, they’ll all but forget you exist.”

“I can’t wait for that to happen. I’m tired of hearing rumors about something involving me. Especially since I basically don’t know shit,” you admitted. This caused Sami to raise her eyebrows.

“How do you mean? If you don’t mind, of course.” For a second, you pondered on whether or not you wanted to talk about it, but your doubt washed away pretty quickly. It was amazing how comfortable you felt around these people. You did look around the courtyard though, to make sure there was no one there that you didn’t want to hear what you were talking about. When you decided the coast was clear, you let out a sigh before you spoke.

“Well, on Thursday, I was sent a picture,” you started, feeling the pang in your chest, but not as fiercely as you did yesterday. “It was of Shawn making out with some girl. I’m guessing it was one of his friends who sent it to me, but it wasn’t from a number I had saved. I’m also assuming that whoever it was that sent the picture also sent it to a lot of people. I got a lot of messages that night from people I’d maybe spoken to once about what happened, but the thing is, I don’t know what happened. I didn’t want Shawn’s explanation, because I didn’t think he’d be truly honest, and I wasn’t sure who to ask about it. Shawn’s friends would probably defend him.”

Sami’s face turned to one of deep thought, as if she was trying to solve some kind of puzzle.

“Did you think about texting the sender?” Alan asked. When he said it, you felt kind of dumb for not thinking about it.

“I did not,” you admitted.

“I can write something up for you,” Sami offered. “That way you don’t have to look at the picture again.” You shrugged, and handed your phone to Sami, who took it in her hands, bringing it close to her face. She tapped on what you assumed was the conversation with the sender, and for a moment, you could have sworn there was shock in her eyes. If it had been there, it didn’t last, as her face instantly went back to the one of thought. She hesitated a moment, then started typing away.

“How does this sound: Hey, I want to thank you for sending this. Do you mind telling me how you came upon this picture?” She said aloud.

“Yeah, that sounds fine,” you said. Sami tapped the screen again, sending the message, before handing your phone back to you. A part of you felt a little anxious. On the one hand, you wanted to know the story behind the photo, but at the same time, you wanted to remain willfully ignorant. It mostly branched from a fear inside you that he’d been cheating for a long time.

However, the rest of lunch passed, and you hadn’t received any messages. While it was a little relieving, it still added on to the anxiety that had settled in the pit of your stomach. You tried to ignore it though, as you and Kylo headed to physics, the two of you walking in a comfortable silence.

When you got to Mr. Windu’s class, the two of you took your seats, while people whispered from around the room.

“Can you believe she’s hanging out with him now?”

“She really shouldn’t lower her standards like that just because of what happened.”

The last one had you whipping around, trying to find the person who said it. Everyone looked away when you did, though, so there was no clear suspect, but it didn’t prevent you from glaring at everyone around the room. At least, you did until you saw Shawn walk in. Once you caught even the slightest glimpse out of the corner of your eye, you turned back around, boiling in your anger.

“Don’t worry about it,” Kylo said softly, unbothered by the whispers. “I’m the town disappointment, of course they’re going to say that.” You looked up at Kylo and frowned.

“What makes them so holy to pass judgement like that? I’m sure they’ve all done fucked up shit too, their parents just aren’t as in the spotlight as yours,” you huffed out as Mr. Windu began to take roll.

When Mr. Windu’s lecture started, you were your normal studious self, taking detailed notes and making sure to get any equations down. Every once in a while, you would look over to Kylo’s notes and noticed the bare minimum of notes being taken. At one point, you looked at him incredulously. He simply shrugged before writing in the margins of your notes.

I’ve always been good at science. You let out a small huff of air before writing back.

Lucky. Kylo smiled before looking back up at the board, where Mr. Windu was writing another equation.

When the bell rang, you quickly shoved your stuff into your backpack, and waited for Kylo so the two of you could get to fourth block. Once Kylo had his stuff packed, the two of you were off. You were free, at least that was what you thought. The notion of freedom disappeared when you felt a hand on your shoulder, causing you to stop in your tracks, and for Kylo to stop as well. Turning around, you had to resist the incredible urge to punch Shawn in the face.

“You haven’t been responding to my messages,” he stated. He was obviously trying to sound hurt, but you could hear that hint of anger in his voice. It was something you were familiar with, but it was weird for it to be directed at you.

“Fuck off, Alvarez,” Kylo said, stepping forward, his figure looming over you. You looked up at Kylo and shook your head.

“I don’t remember asking your opinion, Solo,” Shawn said, trying to puff out his chest. It was kind of funny to see, honestly, because he was at least six inches shorter than Kylo. Despite how funny a part of you found Shawn’s response, though, you stepped between them.

“Have you considered that the reason I haven’t responded to you is because I don’t give a fuck about what you have to say?” You finally said, crossing your arms as you looked at Shawn. Looking at him straight on like this for the first time in a week was causing your stomach to churn, and your heart to clench, but you were tired, in every sense of the word. You just wanted to be left alone to deal with your emotions, and not have him harassing you every three seconds.

“You have to let me explain myself-” he started, but you let out a laugh, one of those laughs that dripped of sarcasm and anger.

“I don’t have to let you do shit. You cheated on me, end of story. Please, just leave me alone,” you said before turning around and walking off. After a few seconds, you heard Kylo begin to follow you, catching up to you with ease and falling into step beside you, not saying a word. You appreciated that, as you were trying your hardest not to cry. As much as you thought your anger had taken over your sadness, it was really just a blanket. At this moment, it felt like you were shriveling from the inside, and anything said to you would immediately cause you to start sobbing. It was a special kind of hurt, being cheated on. So many emotions ran through your head, but the one that remained in your heart always lingered; why weren’t you enough?

The two of you walked into fourth block not but two minutes before the bell rang. You took the same seat you sat in yesterday, and settled in your seat, breathing deeply to keep yourself calm. You saw Sami and Phasma both look at Kylo, confused looks on their faces. Kylo merely shook his head before pulling out a notebook. Taking one final deep breath, you did the same, sitting straight as you waited for Mr. Skywalker to call roll.

Once he’d done so, he picked up a crate, placing it on the desk nearest to him.

“Alright, go ahead, come up, and grab your copy of Beowulf,” he said.

“I’ll get them.” Kylo said as he stood, walking up to the crate and waiting behind your other classmates as he waited to grab the books. When he came back, he handed a book to each of you, and you gave him a half smile. It was all you could really manage, but Kylo matched it with a little more enthusiasm than you.

Once everyone had their books, Mr. Skywalker decided to go into the history of Beowulf. However, during his explanation, you began to zone out. You really just wanted to go home, curl up in your room, and sleep until tomorrow came. You did feel a hand tap you, and you turned to Kylo, who was holding out a slip of paper to you, while keeping his eyes on the board. You took the folded paper from his hand, and opened it up. On the paper were two phone numbers, the top one being Phasma’s, and the lower being Sami’s. You typed both into your phone and sent a simple “hey” to each number. Sami responded back.

You okay?

With a sigh, you started typing on your keyboard.

Yeah, just had a run-in with my ex. You watched Sami out of the corner of your eye as she read your message and responded.

Shit, I’m sorry. She then sent a picture of a ridiculously fat cat, which actually did make you smile.

The rest of class passed by pretty quickly, even after the class started the beginning of the poem aloud, which, like anyone else, you had to admit was the worst part of class. When Mr. Skywalker had decided the class had done enough reading, everyone began to pack up as they waited for the final bell to ring to let them out of class. Phasma and Sami both turned around in their seats to strike conversation for the last few minutes of class.

“Glad that’s over,” Phasma said, frowning. “Why do we have to read aloud in the first place?”

“Torture,” Sami said sagely. “We’re meant to suffer.”

“Pretty sure it’s so that people can gain confidence reading aloud and speaking in front of a crowd,” Kylo said as he leaned back in his seat, looking at his phone.

“What academic input, truly an improvement for such a delinquent,” Phasma quipped, causing Kylo to look up from his phone, eyebrows raised, before returning to staring at the screen. “So, I heard you’re coming to Jordan’s on Friday.” Phasma now turned to you.

“Yeah. I’m actually pretty excited,” you said, leaning forward to feel more present in the conversation.

“As you should be, Jordan knows how to have fun,” Sami said, making herself sound like an expert in the subject of Jordan. You laughed as the bell rang, standing up and stretching before slinging your backpack onto your shoulder. You watched as Finn, Poe, Rey, and Rose all walked by, waving at you as they went. You waved back to each of them, but frowned a little once they’d passed. You hadn’t really spoken to them much since Thursday, and you felt kinda bad about it. You would talk to them tonight, you decided.

Soon, the four of you filed out of the classroom, walking at a comfortable pace as Kylo and Phasma walked together, talking about skating. You and Sami walked side by side in silence, until Sami leaned closer to you, so that the two in front of you couldn’t hear.

“I think I know who the girl in the picture is. Text me when you get home,” she said before drifting away again. You felt your chest tighten, but you only nodded, deciding to change the subject.

“I’m gonna tell my mom I’m staying at your place Friday night when I get home. She’s a little weird about sleepovers, so she might want to talk to you,” you said as your group reached the front of the school.

“Hey, I can probably just tell my grandparents that the three of us are gonna study at your place,” Kylo offered.

“Yeah, that works. After all, I am the only one of your friends who hasn’t wound up with the title ‘delinquent,’” Sami quipped. Kylo gave a frown in response, before stopping in front of the entrance to the school.

“Well, we’ll see you tomorrow,” Kylo said. The two of you waved goodbye before heading to Kylo’s car. There was silence at first as the two of you climbed into the car, and Kylo started the engine, but it was broken with a sigh from Kylo.

“We don’t have to do this, you know. If Shawn’s just gonna harass you for even being around me, it isn’t really worth it,” he said, pulling out of his parking spot. You couldn’t help but let out your own sigh.

“That’s not the reason he’s harassing me,” you started. “He’s harassing me because he thinks he can still control me, and convince me that he didn’t mean it. Honestly, the easiest way to get him to leave me alone is if we stick to the plan.” It was a frustrating realization, but it was certainly true. If Shawn thought you had moved on, he was probably more likely to leave you alone. Sure, he’d probably have some choice words to say about you, but you seriously doubted that he’d say them to your face.

The rest of the drive home was spent with the music loud, Kylo occasionally singing along softly. When the two of you pulled into the driveway, you waited before stepping out, and turned to Kylo.

“Thanks for sticking up for me again. You really don’t have to do that,” you said. Kylo shook his head and ran a hand through his ebony hair.

“You’re my friend, (y/n). I’ll always stick up for you,” he responded before turning the car off. You gave him a small smile before opening the door.

“See you in the morning,” you said before stepping out.

“See ya, bright and early,” he responded with a smirk. You shook your head as you turned to head to your house.

Upon walking in the door, you saw your mom sitting at the dining room table. She was looking at what looked to be some documents from work, but she looked up when you closed the door, and gave you a warm smile.

Here goes, you thought to yourself before returning her smile, and walking up to the table.

“How was your day, honey?” she asked, shifting her attention to you.

“It was good. Actually, my friend Sami invited me to stay at her place on Friday,” you responded. You actually felt a lot of anxiety in your chest, but you were trying your hardest not to let it show. You’d never really lied to your parents like this before, and it was strange for that to start your senior year, but you actually really wanted to go. The opportunity to hang out with your new set of friends, not to mention Kylo, was so exciting.

“Oh, is this that new friend you were talking about yesterday?” she asked. It almost looked like there was a great deal of happiness in her eyes. They practically lit up, and you couldn’t really say you blamed her. After all, after you’d gotten home on Thursday, you had shut yourself in your room, refusing to come out. Making new friends and being invited to one of their houses? It was definitely an upgrade.

“Yeah. She’s really cool, and she’s trying to get into art school,” you said, smiling at your mom.

“Alright, but I want you to message me throughout the night. Are you gonna head home with her that night?” Your heart dropped at that. You hadn’t mentioned anything about Kylo- obviously- and you were supposed to be having dinner with the Skywalkers on Friday as well. There really was no point in lying about that, it would be too easy to get caught.

“Actually, I’m supposed to have dinner with the Skywalkers next door that night, too. I’ve been getting rides from Ben, and his grandparents invited me to dinner,” you said, waiting for shit to hit the fan. Surprisingly, your mother’s face didn’t turn red, but she did frown.

“I don’t know about you hanging around with Ben Solo…” you could tell she was trying to be delicate, but there was no mistaking in her voice that she felt the same way about him that all the parents did. You knew another lie was needed in this scenario too.

“He has been giving me rides, and they really just want us to be friends because they think I’ll make him be a little more responsible. But he did offer to take me to Sami’s house too. I promise, when I get there, I’ll take a picture with Sami and send it to you,” you said. You could see the cogs turning over in her head as she thought it over. When she finally let out a sigh, you knew she had relented.

“Alright, but I want to see you after dinner, before you leave for Sami’s, okay?” she said. You smiled and nodded before turning on your heels, heading for the stairs.

“I’m gonna go ahead and get started on dinner,” she called as you practically skipped up the stairs.

When you got into your room, you let your backpack fall to the ground before plopping onto your bed and pulling your phone. You had two messages. One was from Sami, and you remembered what she had told you earlier. With a pang in your chest, your excitement for Friday extinguished, you decided to look at the other message.

It was from the sender of the picture.

#kylo ren #kylo ren fanfiction #star wars fanfic #kylo ren x reader #kylo ren x you #reader insert #reader insert fanfic #highschool au

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turtlepated · 4 years

Text

The Handbook for the Recently Married (to the Deceased)

Chapter 6:

Again, sorry it’s been so long since I last posted! Life has been so crazy these last several weeks for all of us that I just haven’t had it in me to do much besides spend each weekend trying to decompress so I can start it all over again the following Monday.

Also be warned that this chapter ended up way angstier than I originally planned on but don’t worry! Next chapter is gonna be so fluffy you’re all gonna die.

Tag List

@sapphic-florals , @beetlejuicebeadoll , @do-ya-hear-that-sound , @imtherain , @imsuchahobbit , @pastelnacht , @tialanderrol , @sammyskip , @monsterlovinghours , @allmycrushesaredead , @missiheart123

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Well, things had certainly taken a turn that he never expected.

Beetlejuice lay in bed, still as a corpse and staring at the dark ceiling while the breather in bed beside him slept soundly. Although… he was a breather himself now, wasn’t he? He still couldn’t quite get over how weird it all was: lungs expanding in his chest as he breathed in and out, his heart thumping faintly, his skin warm under his own fingers. His hands kept running over his arms, marveling at the feeling. Even the lightest touch seemed to send sparks shooting up and down his nerve endings, he was so much more sensitive now than when he was dead.

He let his head roll to the side, his eyes tracing the silhouette of his new bride snuggled under the blankets next to him. She looked so peaceful, the comforter gently rising and falling as she breathed. If not for that simple, rhythmic bit of movement it’d almost look like she was the dead one. Beetlejuice couldn’t wrap his head around how breathers could just… switch themselves off for the whole night. That was the best part of the day! But they wasted it, out cold in their beds. He’d lain there for a while with his eyes closed, peeking every now and then at her like he was comparing his technique to see if he was doing it right. Try as he might, Beetlejuice had no luck with going to sleep.

It did cross his mind to shake her awake, but he eventually just slid his legs out from under the covers and stood, padding barefoot from the room and feeling his way to the kitchen. Wasn’t that what breathers did when they couldn’t sleep? They went to the kitchen for a glass of water or a midnight snack or whatever? He cut the corner from the living room to the kitchen too sharply, wanging his elbow on the wall.

“Ow! Shit!” he yelled, gripping the throbbing joint in his opposite palm and rubbing it vigorously. Squinting his eyes, Beetlejuice realized that he couldn’t see in the dark anymore, at least not as well as he had as a born-dead demon from Hell. Grumbling to himself, he reached out with both hands to find the counter of the kitchen island and felt his way along to the refrigerator. Opening the door let cool white light illuminate the room as his eyes roved the inside of the appliance. He wasn’t really hungry, he didn’t think, but he was exceptionally bored. With that and little else in mind, Beetlejuice began pulling things out of the fridge and setting them on the island. He did try to be quiet, sort of, as he rummaged in drawers and cabinets in search of what he needed.

Once all the essentials were laid out before him, he rolled up his metaphorical sleeves and got to work dumping ingredients together in a mixing bowl, smashing eggs together and depositing the runny, oozing yolks into the mix. Sure, there were bits of shell still in there but he liked crunchy textures so no big deal.

The sound of unsteady, shuffling feet drew his attention to the corner where he’d banged his elbow, where the kitchen led into the living room. His own little Sleeping Beauty stumbled into view, her eyes barely open, her hair mussed, still half asleep.

“Beej?” she said blearily, blinking in the light from the fridge that he’d left open. “What’re you doing?”

“Makin’ pancakes,” he replied at once, going back to furiously stirring the concoction in the mixing bowl.

She didn’t say anything for a long moment, swaying gently in place while she took in the scene. “D’you know how to make pancakes?” she asked at length.

“Nope!” he chirped back. “But I watched the Maitlands do this, like, every weekend before they bought it.” He shrugged nonchalantly. “How hard can it be?” Though he continued what he was doing like she wasn’t even there, Beetlejuice watched her out of the corner of his eye, wondering when the explosion was going to go off. He was making a mess in her kitchen at three in the morning, he was certain she was about to get angry, yell, scream. But she didn’t do any of those things. Instead she shuffled around the island towards the pantry, closing the fridge door as she passed it, and he could hear her moving things around in the laundry room before she reappeared with some sort of cooking apparatus. She laid it on the stove and plugged it in.

“ ‘Lectric griddle,” she mumbled, yawning widely. “Less of a chance you’ll burn the house down. ‘M going back to bed, ‘kay? Try not to stick pancakes to the ceiling.” As she tottered off back toward the bedroom, Beetlejuice watched her with both suspicion and amazement. She just kept on surprising him, first with the marriage proposal, then the nice kiss (kisses! he reminded himself), letting him in her bed, trusting him not to destroy her kitchen? The more devilish side of him couldn’t help entertaining the thought of just trashing the place, giddy with excitement over the thought of her face in the morning when she walked in and saw what he’d done.

But another side of him, quieter and more subdued than his deeply ingrained instinct for chaos, didn’t want to abuse her absurd faith in him. Which, for a demon, was just ridiculous. He was a demon, for hell’s sake! Chaos and discord, panic and dismay, those were his specialties! His entire reason for being! Screwing with breathers had been his bread and butter for as long as he could remember! So why wasn’t he dousing the whole room in flour and nailing sandwich meat to the walls and ceilings? What was it about this breather in particular that made him want to…. behave, of all things?

The rest of the early morning hours slipped by and he still couldn’t answer his own question. He sat at her kitchen island on a bar stool, mercilessly vivisecting the results of his pancake making attempts which turned out flat and round and more or less pancake-shaped but were colored purple. She woke up late, he gathered, from all the swearing and running around and sounds of things falling that kept emanating from the bedroom and the en suite, finally rushing past him hopping on one foot as she wrestled on a shoe.

“I’m gonna be so late!” she huffed, not even mentioning the mess he’d left on the counter or the pile of dishes in her sink. “I thought I hit the snooze but I must’ve turned it off… I gotta run, Beej, I’ll see you later!” And with that inauspicious exit, Beetlejuice found himself left alone in what was essentially a strange house.

He soon lost interest in the pancakes and instead occupied himself by exploring/plundering to his heart’s content. Though it wasn’t as much fun without the thrill of potentially being caught being somewhere he wasn’t meant to be by someone who had things they didn’t want him to find. It was, somewhat disappointingly, all pretty run-of-the-mill since until he came along she’d evidently lived here alone. She owned lots of book (yawn) and movies (less yawn), but no dirty magazines or erotica novels. Not even an issue of Cosmo. Just his luck…

Beetlejuice had spent enough time watching breathers that when he got bored enough he flipped on the TV and surfed idly in search of something that held his interest. But with daytime TV it was mostly crummy talk shows, sitcom reruns and DIY home improvement. Switching it back off with a sigh, Beetlejuice slumped sideways on the sofa until he lay on his side, rolling over and stretching his legs out to dangle over the back of the sectional. How long had she been gone, now? Time had always been a slippery and irrelevant concept for him, born-dead demons and dearly departed souls didn’t care about time. It didn’t even exist in the Netherworld, so once he was shunted off to the Upperworld he never really bothered to try and get a handle on it. What would’ve been the point, when nobody could see him anyway. Thinking about the Netherworld gave him an idea, though. Wriggling his way off the couch, Beetlejuice bustled back into the bedroom. He was still wearing the pajamas she’d loaned him the night before, but what he was looking for now was in his suit jacket. Retrieving it from the back of the bathroom door where he’d left it, Beetlejuice rummaged in the pockets for a few moments before he found what he was looking for: an ancient and yellowed skull with leering, pointed teeth and three eye sockets.

He hustled back to the living room and plopped back down on the sectional, crossing his legs and setting the skull facing him on the seat cushion. He snapped his fingers and immediately in his hand was an ancient silver coin. Conjured currency normally wouldn’t cut it with a speaking skull, but Beetlejuice prided himself on his convincing forgeries. He fed the drachma through the gaping eye socket on the forehead and waited. After a moment a reddish glow flickered to life in each of the three empty sockets and the skull tipped back, hinging at the jaw and opening the mouth like a Victrola.

After another moment of silence, a familiar and harried voice emanated from inside the skull: “Netherworld Customs, how may I direct your call?” Beetlejuice beamed, folding his arms atop his crossed legs to lean in closer to the skull.

“Hi, Maria!”

His grin widened at the surprised gasp and the hissed string of swearing in Spanish. He could almost picture the deceased beauty queen at her desk, looking around to make sure no one was in earshot.

“Lawrence!” she seethed quietly through her teeth. “I’ve told you not to call me here unless it’s an emergency! I’m at work!”

“I know,” Beetlejuice replied, nonplussed. “You’re always at work. But I’m booooooooored.”

He heard her let out an exasperated sound. “That is not an emergency! We have a bit of a crisis on our hands here, if you care to know!” Cooing appreciatively, Beetlejuice leaned in closer, bent double over his lap and resting his chin in his hands. “Oooh! Do tell!” He could hear her rolling her eyes in disapproval.

“Living people, Lawrence! A girl and a man. They came through a door into the Netherworld and then left! The bosses downstairs are in an uproar, Juno is on the warpath!” At those words Beetlejuice full-on chortled, practically vibrating in place with glee at the knowledge that he’d had a hand in causing that old crusty battle axe even a moment’s worth of frustration. Miss Argentina scoffed reproachfully. “It’s not funny, Lawrence!” But he couldn’t stop giggling, wincing and yelping at a sharp cramp between his ribs from the uncontrollable laughter. “It’s pretty funny from here!” he wheezed, swiping at his face with the back of one hand. Oh yes, a pissed-off Juno might just be the funniest thing on any planet, so long as he was well away from the Netherworld’s most ruthless office manager. Silence continued from the other end of the connection while he got ahold of himself again, and again Beetlejuice could visualize the shrewd, calculating look on the fiery receptionist’s face as she drew her conclusions.

“You had something to do with this, didn’t you?” she surmised. Only slightly lying, Beetlejuice immediately argued his case. “Of course not, mamacita! I was only doing my civic duty, trying to help a couple dazed and confused newlydeads on their way to the other side! I drew a door for the two stiffs and before I could do anything the lil pipsqueak ran through! Nothin’ I could do! Cross my black little heart and hope to die! Again.”

If her aggravated, long-suffering groan was any indication, Maria was not convinced. “Listen to me, Lawrence, this is serious!” she whispered urgently. “If you had anything to do with it and you know what’s good for you, you’d better steer clear of the Netherworld until things quiet down!” Beetlejuice chuckled to himself, examining his own hand again which was now less of a pale, corpse-like gray and had taken on a rosier skin tone. Thanks to the blood that was now circulating through his living body! But other than him, his little biscuit maker and the dolts in the Maitland/Deetz house, nobody had any idea that he’d pulled off his plan to marry a breather and come to life! Chuckling to himself, Beetlejuice assured her, “I’m all over it, babes. You know me, I don’t like stirring the pot.” Maria huffed again.

“I do know you, Lawrence! Which is why I know I’m wasting my time to ask you this, but please, at least try to stay out of trouble, won’t you?” She sounded so sincere and genuine that it actually made his chest grow tight for a moment. It was no fun yanking someone’s chain when they actually gave a shit about you even when you annoyed them, so he decided at the very least he could tell her what she wanted to hear.

“I’ll do my best, babe.” She let out a pensive hum, then sighed. “I’ve got to go. Take care of yourself, Lawrence.” There was a click as of a phone receiver being laid back in its cradle. The skull’s mouth closed with a tiny creak, the lights in the eye sockets fading to nothing. What had started as some decent entertainment at a former coworker’s expense had left him feeling strangely wrong-footed and lonesome. Growing restless, Beetlejuice got to his feet and padded listlessly back to the kitchen, wondering again how much longer it would be before his new housemate/spouse came back home. At least then he’d have someone to talk to, someone to take his mind off this growing sense of unease.

Hours seemed to go by in bursts of speed only to slow to an unbearable crawl. Everything he tried to distract himself from the downward spiral of his thoughts only worked for a hot minute before the feeling came back, a pressure building inside him that seemed to squeeze in his chest until it made it difficult to draw breath. How much longer would she be gone?

By the time it started getting dark and she still hadn’t returned, Beetlejuice was all but in a panic. Which was bad enough before when he was dead, but now that he was alive? His heart was racing in his chest, he couldn’t seem to catch his breath, his hands were freezing, he was soaked in sweat and he couldn’t keep still, pacing through the house, debating just going out to look for her. But he didn’t have a car, he wasn’t even sure where she worked.

What if…? No.

He cut off that train of thought, not willing to let himself fall down that black hole but even as he very deliberately steered himself clear the yawning maw of the horrible idea opened wider and wider, threatening to swallow him. It was happening again. It was already happening again.

She’d said so just the night before, asking about divorcing him, when he’d be able to leave. Yeah, sure, she’d backpedaled hard when she saw that she’d upset him but she’d still brought it up! And that fact did nothing to stop him picking at his most recent wound.

“You’re leaving me? But I thought we were pals!”

“What’re you talking about? I’ve gotta find my mom!”

A soft, keening groan leaked out of his mouth before he could stop himself, agitatedly swiping at the dribble of saliva working its way over his bottom lip. This wasn’t like that, he told himself. She had said she wanted him here, she hadn’t even yelled at him when he woke her up with his pancake making. She’d said she would see him later, she said, she said!!

Beetlejuice strode purposefully to the back door, reaching out to grasp the knob and freezing halfway to opening the door. Where would he go? It did briefly cross his mind, very, very briefly… to ask the Maitlands if they knew anything about her. He dismissed the idea almost immediately, no way in hell was he about to go crawlin’ back to those losers and their pet breathers! So he stood at the back door, paralyzed by indecision, one hand gripping the doorknob while his chest heaved and his mind spun. There was a familiar ache blossoming in the center of his chest but now that he was alive it was so much worse. Tendrils of that painful tightness were crawling up the sides of his neck, constricting his windpipe, throbbing in the roots of his teeth and between his lungs and down his wrists into his hands.

Where was she? Why wasn’t she back yet? What if she didn’t come back at all?

Beetlejuice whined again, a pathetic sound even to his own ears as he leaned forward until his head thumped against the door. He pressed harder against it, turning his head side to side until his skin grew hot from the friction, not bothering with wiping his chin as a string of drool dripped from his lips to sink into the rug between his feet.

She’d come back, he told himself. She wouldn’t leave him alone.

Because if she did, he didn’t know what he’d do.

-------

Turns out when you keep getting left behind by people you start expecting it.

No ETA yet on chapter 7 but expect lots of ooey gooey feels because I am a soft bitch.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

#beetlejuice #beetlejuice the musical #beetlejuice broadway #beetlejuice x reader #beetlejuice x self insert #The Handbook #my writing #Pate writes

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